My Place Is Right Beside You
by MissYuki1990
Summary: Steve could swear that he has never in his life seen such vivid eyes. That shade of almost shimmering green could not be seen anywhere in the world. It looked as though the very essence of everything that was beautiful and pure was trapped within those endless depths, and Steve forgot for a moment where he was. WARNINGS IN THE CHAPTER, RATED M FOR A REASON
1. Past Always Catches Up With You

Written for **Erisa ken**!

Just sit back and enjoy, and I hope I managed to live up to your expectations!

**Disclaimer: **I claim no rights to the characters of Harry Potter and Captain America. They belong to their respective owners. Story starts at the end of the Winter Soldier, but I'll tone it down with spoilers as much as possible. The songs featuring in this chapter are 'The Shadow of Your Smile' performed by Ella Fitzgerald, and 'Dream a Little Dream of Me' sung by Louis Armstrong, in that order . I claim no rights to the songs.

**Warnings: ** slash, explicit content, romance, bit of drama, bit of angst

**cut**

Steve woke up slowly, feeling as though someone hung weights on his body. Everything hurt, and his brain was too fuzzy for him to make a connection to anything. Judging by the scent tickling his nose, he was in the hospital, but the lights were dimmed so they didn't hurt his eyes.

A soothing voice was coming from somewhere to his right, and Steve slowly turned his head to the side.

_"… I am glad it cannot happen twice, the fever of first love. For it is a fever, and a burden, too, whatever the poets may say. They are not brave, the days when we are twenty-one. They are full of little cowardices, little fears without foundation, and one is so easily bruised, so swiftly wounded, one falls to the first barbed word. To-day, wrapped in the complacent armour of approaching middle age, the infinitesimal pricks of day by day brush one but lightly and are soon forgotten…"_ (1)

As Steve's sight slowly focused, he finally saw whom that soothing, velvety voice belonged to. It was a young man, hardly older than some 25 years with playful raven-black tresses which danced around a handsome face. Eyes were shadowed by messy bangs, so Steve couldn't see their color, but as the young man read from the book Steve's eyes fell on rosy lips, soft and succulent.

_"-how a careless word would linger, becoming a fiery stigma, and how a look, a glance over a shoulder, branded themselves as…"_ (2)

Steve must have made some sort of a sound because the young man stopped reading and raised his head. Steve could swear that he has never in his life seen such vivid eyes. That shade of almost shimmering green could not be seen anywhere in the world. It looked as though the very essence of everything that was beautiful and pure was trapped within those endless depths, and Steve forgot for a moment where he was.

"You are awake?" The young man stood up as he closed the book and placed it on the seat he occupied a moment ago, quickly flittering around Steve, checking up on the wounded soldier.

_He's a doctor?_ Steve thought, but to his horror, he found himself unable to move let alone talk.

"Hey!" The young man appeared right beside Steve again, leaning over him with a calming smile and warm eyes. "Take it easy. You're safe."

Steve found it strange how the young doctor had no qualms about brushing his hand through Steve's bangs in a calming gesture, and the soldier couldn't help but calm down as wave upon wave of warmth washed over him.

He almost didn't want to go back to sleep, but the soothing murmurs of the young doctor lulled Steve's weary mind and brought peace to his hurting heart.

And for the first time since he woke up from his icy prison, Steve fell asleep without any problems.

**cut**

_"…But escape can be delusion, and what he is running from is not the enclosing world and its inhabitants, but his own inadequate self that fears to meet the demands which life makes upon…"_ (3)

The same young doctor Steve remember hazily stopped reading before Steve even managed to speak up, although he doubted he even wanted to. He came to a realization that he could listen to the young man's velvety voice for an eternity and never get bored of it. The soft, heavily accented words rolled off of those lips in a steady flow, painting vivid images in Steve's mind.

"You're awake." The young man smiled and Steve as he closed the book not even bothering to mark the page.

Steve wanted to say something, but he had no idea where to start. His first thought was to ask who the young man was, but another part of him wanted to know which day it was and how long it has been since he was hospitalized.

The young man must have seen something in Steve's eyes because those lips tilted up into a comforting smile while elegant, long-fingered hands came to rest in his lap, and the beautiful man shifted a bit in his chair. "It's been a week since you were brought to this hospital, and you were in a coma for two days. Your injures have been taken care of and are healing nicely and without complications. Several of who I suppose are your friends came to visit, but they had to leave since the visiting hours are over. It's 11:35 PM."

It was obvious that the young man did this at least a few times before since he delivered the raw facts right off, and Steve couldn't help but smile. "And you are?" he was surprised by how weak and hoarse his voice was, but the young man seemed not to care as he chuckled and answered Steve's question.

"I am doctor Hadrian Parker, and you've been in my care since you were brought here."

"Do you do this for all your patients?" Steve asked, seeing no point in introducing himself, and Hadrian's eyes glimmered mysteriously as he winked at Steve.

"Let's just keep this between ourselves, alright, Captain Rogers?"

The soldier couldn't help but chuckle only to wince when sharp pain flared up his body from several wounds. When he opened his eyes again Hadrian was standing right beside him, checking Steve's wounds with nimble, gentle fingers and an expression of fierce concentration.

Behind the scent of disinfectants Steve caught a whiff of the sharp fragrance of pine-needles and another musky scent he couldn't quite define, and yet he found it strangely appealing.

"Don't strain yourself. It will take a while for all your wounds to heal, despite your strength," Hadrian spoke in a comforting tone and Steve breathed out, pushing the pain to the back of his mind as he looked in Hadrian's eyes.

"Whatever the good doctor says."

Hadrian chuckled and nodded. "Sleep now, Captain. You've earned your rest."

Feeling as though comforting warmth enveloped him, Steve's eyes slipped closed, and the last thing he remembered was Hadrian starting to read again.

**cut**

"On your left," he murmured and smirked when Sam jumped in his seat and turned to look at him. Steve's newest friend and colleague laughed at him as he shifted in his seat, resting his elbows on his thighs and clasping his hands between his knees.

"You gave us quite a fright there, Cap," Sam said and Steve snorted, slowly shifting to his right a bit, frowning when pain surged from his wounds.

"Yeah, I just needed a vacation," Steve pressed out and Sam snorted.

"You know - _normal_ people just ask for leave. They don't get themselves almost blown up," he drawled and Steve rolled his eyes.

"Well, I don't think I fit into the 'normal' category," he answered making Sam laugh dryly.

When Steve saw the look in Sam's eyes, his memory cleared a bit, and Sam could see the moment Steve's mood plummeted. "Any news?"

"As much as I know Natasha is handling the press and Fury's making himself dead. I tried to look for that friend of yours, but…"

"Let me guess. He disappeared without a trace," Steve finished for Sam with a sigh.

"Yeah."

Steve raised his left hand and rubbed his face tiredly. "I should have known," he muttered.

"Look here, Cap," Sam spoke as he leaned closer to Steve who frowned at him, "I have no idea what happened with you and that guy in that Helicarrier, but judging by the trails we found when we located you, you didn't just swim out. Someone dragged your sorry ass out of the river, and there's only one guy we know who could have survived the crash and brought you out. He's alive and kickin', and he's bound to show up eventually. My suggestion is that you sit tight and wait. We have no idea what those freaks did to him. In his place, I'd probably need some time to put everything back together again."

"I know," Steve sighed. "It doesn't make this any easier though. He _was_ my best friend."

"I know," Sam answered and carefully clapped Steve's left shoulder. "Just - Just give it time."

Steve nodded and Sam smirked at him.

"Mr. Wilson?" Both looked at the nurse looking at them with a forced smile. "The visiting hours will be over in 10 minutes," she said, but before she could leave Steve called out to her.

"Is Dr. Parker already here?" he asked and she raised eyebrows at him dully.

"Dr. Parker is working the nightshift. He should be here in a few hours," she drawled and left.

"Dr. Parker?" Sam raised eyebrows at Steve with a smirk. "You're asking about a doctor?"

"Did you meet him?" Steve asked.

"_Him?_ Oooo-ho-ho, now _this_ is interesting," Sam clapped his hands as he laughed, and Steve rolled his eyes with a chuckle. "What's so special about good doctor Parker? Does he have a nice ass or somethin'?"

"Or something," Steve drawled and Sam grinned at him.

"I have a feeling Natasha was looking for your date in a _completely_ wrong crowd," Sam teased and Steve couldn't help but blush.

"It's not like that," he bit out and Sam's eyebrows touched the line of his hair.

"Are my eyes deceiving me or is Captain America _blushing_?" Steve rolled his eyes while Sam chuckled. "I'll just have to sneak into the hospital later to see this _Doctor Parker_."

"His name is Hadrian."

"Oh! So you're on a first name basis already!"

"No, we're - we've just _talked_ two times, and I was too out of it to really talk to him the first time when I woke up while he was here but - but he has a really nice voice, and…" Steve stopped spluttering when Sam laughed at him, "and you're enjoying this way too much, aren't you?"

"Steve, my man, you're an _idiot_."

"Where did that come from?!" Steve snapped incredulously.

"Why don't you just ask him out?!"

"Oh, I can just see the romance in me asking him out while he's changing my catheter," Steve drawled and Sam burst out into loud laughter.

"That would be the nurse's job, but I see your point,," Sam chuckled and Steve rolled his eyes. "But I still stick to it. You should ask him out after you're discharged from this place."

Steve sighed and rested his head back on the pillow. "I don't know. We still have no idea whom we can trust. S.H.I.E.L.D. is gone and we never know what might happen, and I don't want to put anyone in danger, especially not…"

"Doctor Sexy?" Sam cut in teasingly and moved out of Steve's reach when the injured man tried to hit him, only to hiss and still when the wounds complained against the quick movement.

"Bastard!" Steve gasped out while Sam laughed.

"Just relax, man. I just told you to ask him out. You don't even know if he'll say yes yet. Worry about other things as they come along."

"You're right," Steve agreed although begrudgingly.

"Mr. Wilson!" They looked at the doorway and found that same nurse standing there.

"I'm going! I'm going!" Sam turned to wink at Steve before he walked out of the room with a wave, and Steve smiled at the nurse charmingly only to have her snort at him and walk out of the room.

Steve settled in his bed with a sigh and looked at the clock hanging above the doorway. The nurse said Dr. Parker wouldn't be there for a few more hours, so Steve might as well go back to sleep.

A small smile tugged on his lips as he remembered a pair of amazing emerald eyes gazing down at him. He really, honestly wished that his wounds healed as soon as possible, and that Hadrian would agree to go on a date with him.

While Steve never had any problems admitting that he liked both men and women, he didn't have time to investigate how the world viewed same-sex relationships in the 21st century.

He didn't even know if Hadrian liked men, but fortune favors the brave…

Or something like that.

With a content sigh, Steve closed his eyes, imagining the warm tones of Hadrian's velvety voice lulling him to sleep.

**cut**

"Well, this is a surprise!"

Steve looked away from the TV and found Dr. Parker standing in the doorway with that same warm smile on his face.

"Good evening, Dr. Parker," he greeted as he turned the TV off and raised himself up a bit trying to hide a wince, and Dr. Parker tsked as he approached Steve and placed a book on the bedside table beside a tall vase full of yellow roses and white calla-lilies.

"I didn't expect to see you awake, Captain Rogers," Hadrian said as he slowly moved the bandages that were covering Steve's wounds up to check how they were healing.

"I woke up earlier and couldn't go back to sleep again."

"I suppose that is understandable, although you shouldn't force yourself. The more rest you get the faster you will be out of this place."

"Are you trying to get rid of me? But I've been such a good patient!" Steve's words made Hadrian laugh, and the soldier smiled as he listened to the lighthearted sound. Hadrian's head was slightly thrown back and his eyes were closed as he laughed, and he looked even younger than he usually did.

"You have been an excellent patient, Captain Rogers, better than many I've had in my career," Hadrian said as he checked the last of Steve's wounds.

"It's Steve," he corrected and Hadrian looked at him from under messy bangs.

"Alright then, Steve," he answered and the soldier smiled.

"Pardon me asking, Dr. Parker, but how old are you, actually? I can't seem to determine your age, but you seem awfully young to be a doctor."

Hadrian chuckled as he scribbled something down on Steve's chart. "I'm 34 years old. I'll be 35 in July."

"Which date?"

"31st," Hadrian answered and Steve nodded.

"So I'm only - what 60 years older than you?"

Hadrian laughed taking a seat in the chair beside Steve's bed after he took his book. "Well, you most certainly look good for a 95 year old," Hadrian teased and Steve snorted.

"So, what are we reading today?" Steve asked as Hadrian opened his book while Steve settled comfortably again.

"We are reading 'Jane Eyre' by Charlotte Bronte," Hadrian answered as he leaned back in his chair and crossed long, lean legs before he cleared his throat, and Steve observed Hadrian's his shoulders relax and eyes focus on the lines written on the first page.

_"There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning; but since dinner (Mrs. Reed, when there was no company, dined early) the cold winter wind had brought with it clouds so sombre, and a rain so penetrating, that further out-door exercise was now out of the question…"_

**cut**

Steve sighed as he zipped up his jacket. After spending three weeks in the hospital, he really couldn't say that he didn't want to get out of there, but he would also be lying if he said that he was glad he was leaving in the middle of the day. To his great dismay, he hadn't seen Dr. Parker in four days since the doctor obviously only worked night shifts, and Steve would be sleeping by the time the doctor would arrive. During the day he would be with either Sam or Natasha, and despite his superior strength and endurance Steve needed rest just as much as anyone, so he would sleep through the night no matter how much he really wanted to see Hadrian.

"Ready to go?"

He looked up and found Sam and Natasha waiting for him in the doorway. "Yeah, yeah. Ready," he murmured as he grabbed his duffel-bag and threw it over his right shoulder. He looked around the room and took a deep breath.

"You don't look ready, man," Sam teased and Steve glared at him while Natasha frowned in confusion until realization dawned in her eyes.

"Does this have anything to do with one Dr. Parker?" she asked and Steve groaned while Sam laughed.

"Don't tell me you didn't ask him out!" Sam drawled and Steve could weep.

"You've kept me awake during the day so I slept through the night shift! He only works night shifts!"

"Aw, come on. We'll help you track down the good doctor," Natasha teased and Steve rolled his eyes.

"By tracking down you mean finding his address, looking through his background and _spying_ on him, don't you?" Steve stated dully making Natasha and Sam exchange glances.

"If it will make you stop moping around?" they spoke at the same time.

"You will _not_ spy on Hadrian!" Steve snapped at them and they grinned.

"Come on, oh love-sick one! You need something sweet to cheer you up," Sam said as he walked over to Steve and wrapped his left arm around Steve's shoulders as all three of them made their way out of the hospital.

"Steve, why didn't you tell me you liked men? I've been looking for a woman for you for _months_," Natasha asked and Steve groaned.

"Well, excuse me for having other things to worry about," he growled. "Next time I want to tell you something entirely personal, I won't hesitate to inform you of that even if we're in the middle of saving the world."

"You better."

**cut**

Steve took a deep breath as he looked up from the sketch of the White House he was drawing and sipped on his already lukewarm coffee while the warm summer wind caressed his face.

Things have calmed down a bit in the past week since Fury contacted him, Sam and Natasha, telling them that he's going to Europe to take care of some stuff the other three wanted nothing to do with.

Both Steve and Natasha were relishing in this newfound freedom, and while Natasha was doing her best to find herself a place in the world now that all of her secrets were out, Steve took the time to continue his pursuit of knowledge, familiarizing himself with the 21st century.

To his misfortune, Steve went back to having problems sleeping - his dreams full of memories of the war and Bucky, so most of his nights were spent wandering around Washington D.C.

Several times he found himself in front of the hospital Hadrian worked in, but he would turn around and walk away, not having the courage to get in and talk to the good doctor.

Sam couldn't stop laughing at him, telling him that if Steve didn't do something soon, _he_ would. In Sam's words - Steve was pathetic.

His new apartment was on the outskirts of Washington, two blocks away from Sam, so the two spent a lot of time together with Natasha joining them every other day. According to her, the other Avengers were told to lay low.

That made Steve laugh. Clint and Bruce would most certainly lay low. It was something they were good at. But Stark? The news were _full_ of the flamboyant billionaire, and Steve couldn't help but wonder how that man was still alive.

But back to the point at hand.

Steve couldn't stop thinking about Hadrian. In an impulsive act, Steve had wrecked his brain to remember the little snippets he had heard Hadrian read, and after doing some extensive research, he bought examples of the books to read them through.

His private library now consisted of two new books written by Daphne du Maurier and one written by Charlotte Bronte. They brought him little comfort, but since he was being too big of a coward to actually go and find Hadrian, Steve had to settle for them.

It was easy to imagine Hadrian reading the books to Steve as he got swallowed in _Rebecca_, or followed the life of _Jane__ Eyre_. He could almost hear that velvety tenor, the soft, soothing tones of that voice bringing ephemeral repose to Steve's tired mind.

Steve huffed as he finished sketching and closed his sketchbook, finishing his coffee and looking up at the bright blue sky. There was not a single cloud floating carelessly above the city, and Steve could easily forget that just a few short weeks ago, everything he came to know about his purpose in this world came crashing down upon him.

"Steve?"

He was broken out of his thoughts by a familiar voice and jumped in his seat turning around quickly only to gape when he found Dr. Parker a few feet away from Steve, getting ready to take a seat on the same terrace.

"Dr. Parker!" Steve stood up quickly and walked over to the smiling doctor, noting for the first time that the raven-haired man was a good head shorter than Steve and of a much leaner build although Steve could see that the man was in no way weak. "I didn't think I'd meet you here," he said as they shook hands, and Dr. Parker smiled.

"Please, call me Hadrian. I don't like to be called Dr. Parker outside of the hospital." Steve smiled brightly and pushed his hands inside the pockets of his jacket. "I see you have fully recovered," Hadrian commented with eyes roaming over Steve's strong body.

"Fully operational, as you can see," Steve chuckled and Hadrian shot him an amused smirk from under messy bangs. Chin-long playful hair danced in the light breeze, and Steve caught another whiff of Hadrian's unique scent. "How silly of me! Would you - Would you like to get some coffee? I need to thank you _somehow_ for taking such good care of me." Steve showed at his table and Hadrian chuckled as he nodded at him.

"I don't see why not."

Steve grinned as Hadrian walked beside him, and he reflexively placed his hand on the small of Hadrian's back, leading him to the table and helping him with his chair. Steve almost tripped in his hurry to get to his own seat, and blushed as Hadrian chuckled at his clumsiness.

"What can I get you, sir?" The young waitress, Maria, came over and Steve smiled up at her with Hadrian doing the same.

"I'll have a double espresso; no sugar," Hadrian said and Steve raised an eyebrow at him.

"The same but with sugar."

"Will be right back!" Maria smiled at them brightly before she hopped away to bring them their order.

"She is a lively young woman," Hadrian commented and Steve chuckled.

"I come here almost every day and she never fails to make me feel better with how happy she seems with her life. She's studying to become a veterinarian, but her parents don't have money to pay her schooling so she has to work a full time job to get along, and yet she never lets her spirits fall," he said and Hadrian hummed.

"It's nice to see that some young people haven't given up on their dreams yet."

Steve tilted his head to the side at the slightly sad undertone of Hadrian's voice.

"Here you go!" Maria came over and placed their drinks on the table, and Steve immediately reached for his wallet.

"Let me," he said as Hadrian reached into the inside pocket of his light summer jacket. "It's fine," Steve smiled at Maria and she grinned at him.

"Thank you!" she sang as she ran off to the next table. Hadrian chuckled as Steve faced him again, and the soldier swore that - if it were physically possible - he would melt right in that spot like a candle. Hadrian's emerald eyes were glowing with warmth and the light tilt of his lips made him look even younger.

"So, Steve, what have you been doing since you left the hospital?" Hadrian asked as he sipped on his coffee, and Steve almost blushed when the doctor moaned at the bitter aroma of his drink.

"This and that. I'm sure you know what's going on with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets out in the open," Steve answered and Hadrian sighed.

"Yes, I am aware of everything that is going on. I guess people are still as fickle as always; one minute they are praising you and in the next you are public enemy number one."

Even though Hadrian was smiling, Steve could hear the bitter undertone of his voice.

Has he experienced something similar in his past?

"Well, at least everything's quiet right now. Everyone who was with S.H.I.E.L.D. is laying low, so I guess the press has nothing to write about. Soon enough they'll forget all about it."

Hadrian smiled as Steve shrugged almost carelessly.

"Everyone's laying low except _you_, you mean," Hadrian drawled and Steve shot him a confused frown. "Please, Steve; do you really think a pair of glasses and a hoody can hide the fact that you're Captain America? I'm sorry to say, but you're not really that hard to miss."

"I think I've been doing pretty well so far," Steve said as he fixed his glasses higher up on his nose while Hadrian snickered at him.

"I suppose," he took a sip of his coffee while Steve copied his actions, and comfortable silence settled between them for a few moments.

"Hadrian, I've been meaning to ask…" Steve hesitated while Hadrian raised an eyebrow at him. Steve opened and closed his mouth several times trying to push the words he wanted to say past the pile of nervosas in his throat. "You never told me if you read to all your patients," he said and slammed his head against a proverbial wall. _That was NOT what I wanted to say!_

To Steve's surprise Hadrian hummed and tilted his head to the right a bit.

"In all honesty, you're the first patient I did that for. Usually, when I'm done with visits to patients, I return to my office to read or handle whatever emergency I have, but…" there was a strange glimmer in Hadrian's eyes as he observed Steve, tilting his head further to the right, "when I came to see you the first night you were brought back from the operation room, you seemed so sad. Even in a coma, you seemed really sad. Everyone knows your story, Steve Rogers, and I thought - I thought that you wouldn't want to wake up alone…" he shrugged and Steve's eyes widened when Hadrian's cheeks turned rosy as he looked away. "In your place, I wouldn't want to wake up alone."

Steve stared at Hadrian with slightly parted lips and wonder coloring his features. There was something painful in Hadrian's eyes; as though he was on the receiving end of actions opposite of what Hadrian did for Steve, and the soldier suddenly felt the need to know everything there was to know about the good doctor.

He appeared to be a man with a difficult past; a man who suffered a lot and came out on top.

_What is that saying,_ Steve thought as he tried to define the expression on Hadrian's face.

_The loneliest people are the kindest. The saddest people smile the brightest. The most damaged people are the wisest. All because they do not wish to see anyone else suffer the way they do. _(4)

Steve could see it. He could see that Hadrian was lonely. He could see that Hadrian was sad.

And he could feel it.

For some reason unknown to him, Steve could feel that Hadrian was in some way damaged.

And yet in his eyes it made the emerald-eyed man all the more beautiful.

"Would you like to go on a date with me?" he blurted out before he thought it through and Hadrian looked at him with wide eyes and a blush covering his cheeks.

"Excuse me?" he yelped in shock.

Steve took a deep breath and looked straight in Hadrian's eyes. "Hadrian, I would like to ask you to go on a date with me." His mouth was suddenly dry and his throat was constricted, and Steve honestly wondered how he managed to press those words past the lump in his throat.

"I - I would love to," the doctor stuttered out and Steve grinned brightly.

"Really?" his exuberant surprise made Hadrian laugh with fondness shining out of every line on his handsome face.

"Yes, Steve, really."

"W - Well, that's _great_!"

Hadrian chuckled when it seemed as though the grin was permanently stuck to Steve's face.

"I'm free on Saturday," he said and Steve nodded enthusiastically.

"Saturday's great. Should I pick you up around 6?"

"6 sounds good."

"Great!" Steve stood up and almost turned over both the table and the chair, flailing to steady them. "I - I need to go now, so - Saturday at 6?"

Hadrian did his best to suppress laughter as he stood up as well and nodded at Steve. "Saturday at 6. I live on #8 Kenyon Street."

"#8 Kenyon Street; got it. See you on Saturday!" Steve waved at Hadrian only to have to apologize to a lady he almost ran over in his excitement. He waved again as he finally got off the terrace and made his way to his bike.

_I have a date with Hadrian,_ he thought in disbelief.

_I HAVE A DATE WITH HADRIAN!_

**cut**

"I am going on a date with Hadrian!"

Sam had to step to the side quickly when he opened the door of his apartment and Steve all but ran beside him.

"Hey, Natasha!" the soldier greeted the woman sitting in an armchair in Sam's living room just as the owner of the apartment walked in.

"I didn't catch that, Steve. You're going where?"

Said man stopped in his pacing and looked at Natasha and Sam with a grin that put the brightness of the sun at shame.

"I'm going on a date with Hadrian! I ran into him in town and we had coffee and then I just _blurted it out_, and he said YES, and now I'm going on a date with him, and I…"

"Wow, Cap, _breathe_!" Natasha laughed and Steve took a deep breath and held it for a moment.

"It's not working," he blurted out as he went back to pacing while Natasha and Sam exchanged amused glances. "What am I going to do? Where should I take him? Do people still go to the movies on dates? I don't want to do anything too formal, like taking him out to some fancy restaurant. Or maybe I should do it? Do you think I should take him out to dinner? Or should we really go to the movies? But what movie should we watch, I mean I missed everything since 1945, I have no idea what's good! Oh my God," Steve halted, looking terrified, and Natasha and Sam looked like they were on the verge of rolling on the floor with laughter. "I'm going to mess this up! I'll make a fool out of myself and he'll never want to speak to me again!"

"You're not going to live long enough to _go_ on the date if you don't stop rambling and _breathe_!" Sam laughed while Natasha hiccupped with suppressed laughter.

"Just be yourself! Do something you would have done back in the forties!" she told him with obvious amusement.

"But don't take him to the movies. Kids today go to the movies if they want to snog their dates. You don't want to leave a bad impression," Sam warned.

"So no movies. Got it," Steve nodded as he took deep calming breaths, still pacing in front of Natasha and Sam.

"Maybe you _should_ take him to dinner," Natasha suggested. "I know this nice little restaurant with live music. He might like it. The place isn't too fancy, but it still has style, and the food is really good."

"You're gonna have to tell me where that restaurant is," Steve said and all but collapsed in the closest armchair, staring at a spot on the wall behind Sam and Natasha in amazement. "I'm going on a date," he murmured in complete shock. "I'm _actually_ going on a date."

"Trust me; we're just as amazed as you are," Natasha chuckled and Steve frowned at her.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" and while the two laughed at him again, it finally reached Steve's excited brain.

He's going on a date with Hadrian.

And he would make sure it would be a night to remember.

**cut**

Steve took a deep breath as he parked his brand new Toyota Avensis in front of Hadrian's house. He got out of the car and quickly straightened the wrinkles on his black dress pants and fixed his white button-up shirt before he brushed his hair back. Natasha said he looked good, but before he could get out of his apartment she took his tie, unbuttoned the collar before she ruffled his hair and told him to ditch the suit-jacket.

"Remember," she said, "just be yourself."

_That was easier said than done,_ Steve thought as he made his way up the stairs leading to the front door. With a long exhale he raised his hand and rang the doorbell, feeling as though lead was filling his lungs, making it hard for him to breathe.

When the door opened, Steve felt as though someone punched the air out of his lungs.

"Wow," was all he managed to press out as he took a first good look at Hadrian, "you look - _amazing_." And indeed, Hadrian looked _gorgeous_. It appeared that he opted for a more casually formal wear just like Steve, but the black trousers which clung to his thighs and the dark green turtleneck which followed the perfect lines of his torso made Steve seriously question why he even _thought_ of dating women before.

"You don't look too shabby yourself," Hadrian spoke lightly even though there was a slight blush on his cheeks.

I mean who _wouldn't_ blush if Steve Rogers came to pick them up dressed in clothes that accented _everything_, from his broad shoulders and trim waist to his long, muscled legs.

"Shall we?" Steve managed not to stutter as he offered his right forearm to Hadrian. The doctor chuckled as he stepped out of his house and quickly locked the door before he placed his left hand under Steve's forearm and allowed him to lead him to his car.

Steve opened the door for Hadrian and closed them once he was in before he hurried to the other side to take a seat.

"So! If I may ask - where are we going?" Hadrian asked as Steve started the engine.

"I've made reservations in the _Hamilton_."

"Oh! I heard a lot of good things about that restaurant. Sadly I never had a chance to pay it a visit."

Steve had to fight hard against the urge to puff up his chest with pride, so he just smiled.

"A friend recommended it to me. She said that they have a live band playing every Saturday night and that the food is delicious," he said as he slowly drove down the streets of Washington DC. The town was beautiful at night, and there were many people on the streets both young and old, some moving in pairs of two, obviously couples, and some in groups going for a night out in town.

As the radio played classic tunes of the late eighties, comfortable silence settled between them with Steve occasionally glancing at Hadrian who was staring out the window with a small smile on his face.

"I take it you don't go out often since you only work the night shift," Steve said and Hadrian chuckled.

"I don't only work the night shift, Steve. It just so happened that I had to work that shift because a colleague of mine couldn't. Her husband is away on a business trip and she has a 6 year old daughter at home."

"Oh! Well that explains it."

Harry chuckled and Steve smiled, and the rest of the ride was spent in comfortable silence.

When they reached the restaurant, finding a parking place surprisingly quickly, Steve hurried to open the door for Hadrian, and they walked into the restaurant hand in hand.

Once they were seated at a table in the back of the great hall and ordered their appetizers, Steve watched as Hadrian looked around in amazement. The atmosphere was cozy and the band played old jazz and blues, and there were already several couples on the small dance podium. They sat right under a lamp and the dimmed light made Hadrian look even more beautiful, if it was at all possible. It made his skin shine like liquid gold and his hair looked like velvet surrounding his oval face and bringing out the startling brightness of his eyes.

"I take it that you like it here?" Steve asked just as a waiter brought them their drinks and appetizers, bowing at them before he hurried off to serve others.

"It's wonderful, Steve. Thank you for bringing me here," Hadrian smiled at Steve as they started on their food.

"So what do you do in your spare time besides read?" the soldier asked and Hadrian hummed.

"Well, I suppose my life outside of the hospital isn't very interesting. Most of the time I like to take walks or go into a park to read. I don't do much since I almost always need to have my pager on in case of an emergency. I lead a pretty dull life, when I think about it!" he concluded with a smile and Steve chuckled.

"I don't believe it's dull. I'd sooner say - stabilized."

"I guess that compared to your life mine seems like that," Hadrian said and Steve snorted, swallowing before he answered.

"_Any_ kind of life seems more stable than my life," he drawled and Hadrian chuckled.

"Have you ever thought about quitting?" he asked and Steve sighed.

"I did, but-…"

"But?" the doctor pushed and Steve hummed as he took a sip of his wine.

"I guess I don't know what else to do with my life. Before I was frozen, I knew nothing else but the war. I wanted to fight for what was right and now that I'm back and in a completely different time I don't really know what I'd be able to do besides fighting. Now that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s all over the place trying to fix everything, I thought I'd take the time to sort out my life."

"I admire that, really," Hadrian said drawing a small smile to Steve's lips. "You are a soldier through and through, Steve, but you also have a very loving, kind side to yourself. In all honesty, there are a lot of things you could do, and I know you would be _great_ at all of them," Steve bowed his head a little to hide his blush, and as they finished their appetizers the waiter came to bring them the specialty of the day; Cauliflower Stake with Grilled Asparagus on the side, served with a light, fruity rosé.

"Enough about me," Steve said as they started on the entrée. "Judging by your accent you're from England, somewhere around London, if I'm not mistaken. Tell me, what brought you to America?"

Hadrian took a deep breath before he swallowed the bite he took, and Steve thought he saw a whisper of a shadow cross his eyes, but it disappeared too quickly for Steve to discern what it was.

"I guess I needed a change," Hadrian finally spoke up, his eyes focused on his plate. "I don't know how much you know about the terrorist attacks in the United Kingdom from almost 17 years ago."

"I read about them when I was catching up to modern history," Steve said and Hadrian nodded.

"Well, due to a series of unfortunate events, I was right in the middle of the conflicts, and yes - before you comment on it, I _was_ just a child at that time, but as you know yourself, wars don't choose their victims." Steve nodded with a frown as Hadrian took a sip of his wine before he continued with his story. "We managed to defeat the enemy, but to my misfortune it didn't stop there. I was involved in several incidents during the government reform which resulted in me losing a lot of people I held very dear. I was 21 when I left and I haven't returned ever since. I have no friends there to keep contact with so I dedicated myself to becoming a doctor and building a life for myself here in the States. I think I did quite well," he finished with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

Steve knew Hadrian left out a lot from his story, but he knew not to pry. He knew how it was to have a difficult life, and Hadrian seemed to be trying very hard to leave his past behind. Besides, past didn't matter. Hadrian was a successful doctor who obviously cared a lot about his patients, and he was a good man who faced many challenges to get where he was today.

"Your achievements are admirable," he said and Hadrian chuckled.

"Just like yours are," he countered and Steve smiled as he raised his glass.

"Then let's hope that both of us continue achieving our dreams."

Hadrian clicked the edge of his glass against Steve's and they both sipped on their drinks.

Just as they finished the main dish, a young woman joined the band and started to sing.

"Would you like to dance?" Steve asked as several other couples moved towards the podium, a few of them even same-sex couples, and the soldier felt encouraged to try and get Hadrian to dance with him.

"Why not?" the doctor smiled and they stood up at the same time.

Hadrian took a hold of Steve's left elbow with his right hand and Steve led them to the podium just as the song changed. Steve turned Hadrian towards himself and placed his left hand on Hadrian's slim waist as he took his left hand in his right and placed them on his chest as Hadrian rested his right hand on Steve's left shoulder and they started to sway lightly to the music.

_The shadow of your smile when you are gone  
>Will color all my dreams and light the dawn. <em>

Steve closed his eyes as Hadrian rested his forehead on his left shoulder, and Steve leaned his chin on Hadrian's head.

_Look into my eyes my love and see  
>All the lovely things you are to me.<em>

The feeling of holding Hadrian in his arms felt better than anything ever did. The way his body fit against Steve's made the soldier feel as though he finally found that one thing in his life that was missing all along. Compared to him, Hadrian seemed small and delicate, but Steve could see the strength he was hiding. He could see the shadows of his past still haunting him even though Hadrian tried hard to hide it.

Steve could see it in the way he moved, in the way his eyes darted around the room without him consciously doing it. He could see it in the tension in Hadrian's shoulders and the shadows hidden deep inside his beautiful eyes.

Just like Steve, Harry was a soldier.

He understood.

He knew what it meant to fight for your life and the lives of people you want to protect. He knew what it meant to survive on the price of another's life. He knew what it meant to take a life.

But he also knew what it meant to _save_ a life.

And right then, at that moment, as they swayed to the light rhythm of the song, Steve felt Hadrian relax against him as though he finally found a pillar he could lean on; someone who could take control without making him fear that they wouldn't be able to handle it.

And Steve made an oath.

On that night, as they danced holding each other, Steve promised to himself never to leave Hadrian. He found what he was looking for, and he wouldn't let it go no matter what.

_Now when I remember spring,  
>All the joy that love can bring;<br>I will be remembering  
>The Shadow of your Smile.<em>

**cut**

"Thank you, Steve. I had a wonderful time tonight," Hadrian said as Steve escorted him to his front door.

"Does that mean I can hope for another date?" he asked with a lopsided grin and Hadrian chuckled lightly.

"Yes, you can hope for another date," he answered and Steve let go of a breath he was unconsciously holding.

"Great! That's - that's great," he breathed out and Hadrian snickered. Silence settled between them as Hadrian looked up at Steve, and the soldier felt his mouth go dry. "So, I guess I should be - I should be going."

"I have the morning shift tomorrow, so - I guess," Hadrian murmured with a small smile as both of them took a small step towards one another.

Steve bowed his head as he raised his right hand to cup Hadrian's left cheek, and his left settled on Hadrian's waist. Just as their eyes slipped closed and Hadrian placed his hands on Steve's broad chest, their lips met in a light, tender kiss. It was just a pressing of lips against each other's, and yet it shook something deep within them, sending a shiver down Hadrian's body and making Steve let go of a wavering breath.

"I'll see you soon," Hadrian murmured as they parted, his eyes glowing like precious jewels in firelight.

"I'll see you soon," Steve answered just as quietly and Hadrian entered his house with a peaceful smile on his face.

Steve walked down the stairs suppressing the joy bubbling in his chest.

"YES!" he shouted the moment he was in his car and hit the wheel with his fists as every nerve in his body burned with joy.

All in all, it went better than he hoped it would.

_Way_ better.

**cut**

_"…And there you see the distinction between our feelings: had he been in my place and I in his, though I hated him with a hatred that turned my life to gall, I never would have raised a hand against him. You may look incredulous, if you please! I never would have banished him from her society as long as she desired his. The moment her regard ceased, I could have torn his heart out, and drunk his blood! But, till then - if you don't believe me, you don't know me…" _(5)

Steve sighed as Hadrian read to him, unconsciously brushing his fingers through Steve's hair.

They were sitting in the shade of a beautiful magnolia tree in full bloom, its gentle fragrance filling their senses. After they had lunch they came to the Bartholdi Park and spread out a plaid blanket in a quiet corner, far from the other people enjoying the beautiful summer afternoon. Hadrian was leaning back against the tree with his legs crossed in front of him, and Steve was lying beside him with his head in his lap, staring up at Hadrian's beautiful face as the man's soothing, velvety tenor created lively images in Steve's mind.

This was officially their third date, and Steve could freely say that he was in love with Hadrian. The doctor was intelligent, kind, _beautiful_ both inside and out, and Steve found himself thanking God every day for granting him the chance to meet him.

Being with Hadrian erased all worries from Steve's mind. Talking with him helped him find peace. He told Hadrian everything that happened with Bucky, and the loving emerald-eyed man just told him not to give up; that his friend would return to him when he found his place in the world.

"Why do I have a feeling you are not listening."

Steve woke up from his musings to find Hadrian gazing down at him with his lips pulled into an amused smile and his eyes glimmering mischievously. The sun breaking through the branches of the magnolia tree made it seem as though there was a halo around Hadrian's head and Steve's heart beat that much faster.

"Do you find one of the greatest classics in the history of literature boring?"

"I must have drifted away," Steve said, mischievousness awakening in his own heart.

"Oh, really? Is my voice putting you to sleep?" Hadrian was obviously trying to suppress laughter.

"What if it is?" Steve teased.

"Listen, old man…"

"Old man?! I'll show you _old man_!"

Hadrian yelped as Steve grabbed him, and for a few seconds they rolled around on the blanket with Steve tickling Hadrian's sides. It was a true discovery when Steve found out that Hadrian was ticklish; something he had no qualms to use against Hadrian at any given opportunity. The sound of the raven-haired man's laughter was music to Steve's ears.

He stopped and braced himself on his elbows on either side of Hadrian's head, and looked down at him with a grin while the smaller man gasped for breath, his lips still stretched in a smile and tears of laughter clinging to his long, black eyelashes.

"You are _evil_," Hadrian breathed out and Steve chuckled.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I _promise_ I will restrain myself next time," Steve drawled and Hadrian rolled his eyes.

He sighed as he looked up at Steve, and the soldier didn't hesitate to bow down and seal his lips over Hadrian's in a loving, tender kiss.

Steve breathed out when he felt Hadrian entwine his fingers in short blonde as he deepened the kiss, and Steve hummed as they parted and he rested his forehead on Hadrian's, nuzzling his nose against his as their breaths mixed between them, sweet from the chocolate dipped strawberries they shared earlier.

Hadrian's hands slipped to Steve's neck and the tips of his fingers teased the small hairs they found there, sending a shiver down Steve's spine.

"We should get going. I still have to get ready for my shift," Hadrian muttered regrettably and Steve groaned.

"Tell your colleague that she should find herself a nanny," he grumbled as he sat up and Hadrian followed with a chuckle.

"She's a bit cheep," he said with a wink and Steve huffed. They gathered the book and the blanket, and made their way back to Steve's car walking hand in hand with Steve carrying their things.

"Are we still on for Friday?" Steve asked and Hadrian nodded.

"I'm working the morning shift and then I'm free on Saturday, so yeah; we're still on."

"Good," Steve grinned and Hadrian chuckled.

Steve took Hadrian home and, after a lingering kiss goodbye, he made his way over to Sam's place.

The moment he walked in he found Natasha there again, and the two rolled their eyes at the silly grin which decorated Steve's face.

"He's clearly _smitten_," Sam drawled as he walked into the living room from the kitchen and threw a beer to Steve who all but threw himself in what was deemed as _his _armchair.

"You'd be too if you had someone like Hadrian," Steve said as he opened the bottle and took a swing.

"Coming from a man who a few months ago said that it's difficult to find someone who 'shared the same life experiences'," Natasha drawled in amusement and Steve chuckled.

"That's just it, Tash," Steve said and tilted his head back, missing the worried frown which crossed Natasha's face. She glanced at Sam who was looking at Steve with a raised eyebrow, same worry shadowing his eyes. "Andy understands. Even if we didn't pass through exactly the same things, he understands," Steve sighed happily and smiled at them. "I guess I was just lucky to meet him."

And while Steve was happy in his little bubble of love, Natasha and Sam exchanged a glance.

It seemed as though they would have to do some research.

**cut**

"No, but _really_, that movie would have been _so much better_ if that happened!" Hadrian chattered happily as he and Steve made their way to Steve's apartment, laughing along the way.

"Well it was hardly realistic with everything that was going on either way!" the soldier laughed as they reached his apartment.

Hadrian sighed as he leaned on the wall beside the door while Steve dug his keys out of his pocket to unlock his apartment. The lock clicked as Steve looked at Hadrian.

Without thinking, Steve swooped in to kiss him and Hadrian moaned into Steve's mouth, his hands entangling in Steve's hair, pulling him close. As the kiss deepened and grew stronger in intensity, Steve opened the door of his apartment and pulled Hadrian along, slamming the door closed behind them.

He was about to push Hadrian against a wall when something caught his attention as a shiver that had nothing to do with arousal pooling in his stomach, passed down his back.

The lights were on.

He didn't leave the lights on.

They parted and Hadrian looked up at Steve with a worried frown only to tense up when he followed Steve's gaze and found Natasha and Sam standing in the living room with their arms crossed over their chests and dark expressions on their faces.

"Tasha? Sam? What are you doing here?" Steve asked as he and Hadrian walked closer to the two with Hadrian walking slightly behind Steve.

"We have to talk," Natasha threw a thick file on the tea-table between them.

Steve glanced down when papers spread haphazardly from the file, and frowned when he saw a black-and-white photo of a younger Hadrian on one of the papers.

"Natasha, what is the meaning of this?" Steve murmured in a dangerous tone and looked up at his friends from under his eyebrows.

"Something you said the other day didn't sit right with us, so we did a little digging," Sam said, shooting a glare in Hadrian's direction. "You said you were _lucky to meet him._ It wasn't luck Steve," Sam shook his head. "When we dug deep enough we found quite a lot, wouldn't you say, _Hadrian_?"

Steve looked back at the doctor and found him staring at the papers in trepidation.

"Hadrian, what are they talking about?"

The smaller man looked up at Steve with a choked up gasp. "Steve, I would have told you, I swear…"

"Told me _what_?" Steve looked at Natasha and Sam. "What is this?!"

"Hadrian Parker doesn't exist, Steve," Natasha said, glaring dangerously at Hadrian. "At least he didn't exist until 13 years ago."

"Why don't you tell him, _Hadrian_? Or should I say _Harry Potter_, hm?" Sam took a threatening step forward.

"Don't, please…"

"He's a _Wizard_, Steve!" Sam interrupted Hadrian and looked at Steve whose eyes widened.

"Fury told you about them when you joined S.H.I.E.L.D., Steve," Natasha took over. "He told you about the war they fought 18 years ago."

"Why don't you tell him what you did, _Harry_?" Sam snapped at Hadrian as Steve and Natasha looked at him, and the doctor took a small step back. "Why don't you tell him that you were a _traitor_ to you own people? Why don't you tell him how you led a group of renegade Wizards in a crusade against Magical Creatures?"

"I didn't… I _didn't_!"

"Why don't you tell Steve how many you _killed_ in _cold blood_, because you and a group of people had some sort of personal grudge against Creatures of different origin than Humans!"

"It wasn't like that!" Hadrian cried out.

"Andy, what are they talking about?" Steve breathed out in shock and Hadrian looked at him with tears in his eyes.

"It wasn't like that, Steve. I swear on my life, it wasn't like that!"

"The files are clear," Natasha spoke up. "You were the leader of the rebellion. Hundreds died in you crusade against the Creatures, and when you were defeated, you packed your bags and ran away."

"It wasn't like that!" Hadrian cried out. "We had to do it! Hundreds were suffering, we had to do it!"

"And hundreds more died!" Sam roared and Hadrian almost doubled over when a choked up gasp escaped his lips.

"It wasn't like that," he breathed out as he shook his head with tears streaming down his face and desperation written all over his shivering frame. "It wasn't… It wasn't like that!"

"Hadrian!" Steve called out when Hadrian turned on his heel and ran out of his apartment. Steve turned around to face his friends with a burning glare. "I'll deal with you later."

"Steve!" Natasha and Sam cried out as Steve ran after Hadrian, and they exchanged a glance before they ran after them.

**cut**

Steve ran out on the street and saw Hadrian running towards the bus station. His heart was pounding in his ears.

_It's not true, it's not true, it's not true_ rolled around his mind constantly.

"Hadrian, wait!" he shouted as he ran after the younger man, only for Hadrian to run out on the road.

And then happened something Steve knew would forever feature in the center of his nightmares.

Even though he was almost 20 meters away, he could swear he heard the sound of bones breaking. The resonating 'thud' of Hadrian's body hitting the ground as tires screeched against the asphalt was like a direct hit in Steve's guts.

"HADRIAN!" he cried out as his body finally moved, and he ran over to the still body, falling to his knees beside Hadrian. Steve was vaguely aware of people gathering around them as he kneeled beside Hadrian's twitching form, hands hovering above the broken body too afraid to touch it.

"Somebody call 911!" someone shouted as tears filled Steve's eyes and his lungs struggled to breathe over the rising panic. Hadrian was choking up on air, his eyes staring unseeing and filled with pain.

"Andy? Hadrian, don't do this - don't die on me, _please_," Steve whispered brokenly as he brushed Hadrian's hair away from his face, whimpering when he saw blood gathering on the ground from the open wound on Hadrian's head.

"An ambulance is on the way!"

Steve heard someone shout as he caressed Hadrian's quickly paling cheek with shivering fingers, not daring to touch any other part of Hadrian in fear of hurting him. "Please, please don't die," he whimpered.

"S-Steve?"

The soldier gasped through tears as a broken whisper flowed off of Hadrian's blood stained lips.

"I'm here. I'm right here, Andy. The ambulance is on the way. You'll be fine. You'll see. You'll be just f…"

"I'm sorry," Hadrian whispered as his eyes started to slip closed and Steve's world froze.

And as a wavering breath left blood-stained lips, pain exploded in Steve's heart.

**cut**

The slow beating of the heart monitor could be heard through the thick glass. Steve stood in front of it, not allowed to go in, with arms crossed over his chest, face pale and eyes shadowed.

"You had no right to do that," he bit out through clenched teeth as he stared at Hadrian's still form. He was attached to so many machines that Steve hardly knew which one did what. A mask was helping him breathe and he was wrapped in so many bandages there was hardly any skin to be seen.

A heavy concussion, three cracked ribs, four broken ones and a pierced lung, a fractured hip bone and a broken thigh bone, were just _some_ of his injuries.

The worst thing was that he was in a coma.

And no one knew if he would wake up.

"Steve, we were just worried…"

"Hadrian is not a heartless killer!" Steve roared as he turned on Natasha and Sam who flinched back from their enraged friend. "Whatever you found in that file, even if _half_ of it was true, you had _no right_ to dig that up! Hadrian came to America to start a new life! He became a doctor, he saved _hundreds_ of lives! Sam, how many did you kill while you were on the front?!" Sam flinched back and bowed his head in shame. "And _you_, Natasha?! Don't you think this was a bit hypocritical?!"

"Steve, we only wanted to make sure that he wasn't a threat!" Natasha tried to justify them, but Steve would hear none of it.

"You had _no right_," he bit out. "And if he _dies_, I will blame the both of you," With that Steve turned his back on them and crossed his arms over his chest again as he went back to observing Hadrian's still form.

Natasha and Sam exchanged shameful glances.

They messed up.

They messed up horribly.

And in all honestly, they had no idea if there even _was_ a way to make things right.

**cut**

Steve sighed as he rubbed his hurting eyes and closed the book he was reading before he looked up at Hadrian's still form.

Two months.

Two months of hoping and _praying_ for Hadrian to wake up.

His injuries healed a while ago, and Steve had him removed from the hospital and into his apartment, wanting to watch over him. A doctor and a nurse would come over every day, but every day they would tell Steve the same thing.

He hadn't had any real contact with Natasha and Sam, refusing to see them. He couldn't look them in the eyes. While he _did_ understand their reasoning, a part of him blamed them for Hadrian's condition. It could have been handled differently and maybe - maybe Hadrian wouldn't be in this condition.

Steve licked his dry lips as he slowly took a seat beside Hadrian on the soft bed. The heart-monitor beeped in a steady rhythm, and the IV dripped periodically.

Steve brushed Hadrian's hair away from his face and caressed his pale, indrawn cheek with the back of his right hand.

He slowly lied down beside him. Careful of the IV and gently as not to jostle Hadrian, Steve wrapped his right arm around the sleeping man and buried his nose in Hadrian's hair.

_Please, wake up_, he thought as tears filled his eyes. _Please. Please, don't leave me alone. Not you too._

But there was no answer.

**cut**

Steve woke up with a groan and a dull pain in his lower back. Served him right for falling asleep kneeling beside Hadrian's bed, using his arms as pillows.

But it wasn't the dull ache that woke him up.

No. It was a pair of trembling fingers combing through Steve's hair.

Steve froze completely, his breath hitching in his throat. He slowly raised his head as he gulped, so nervous that he was suddenly aware of _everything_. The honks of cars, the screeches of tires, the chirping of a pair of sparrows on the window and the beeping of the heart-monitor which last time he was awake beeped much, _much_ slower.

His eyes met a pair of shadowy, teary orbs of pure emerald, and everything disappeared and dulled in comparison. It was as though all color disappeared sans that perfect green.

"Hey," a voice raspy with lack of use caressed Steve's ears, and lips chapped from lack of fluids tilted into a small smile, and Steve's heart beat harder as his brain finally caught on to what was going on.

"You're awake?" he breathed out as tears gathered in his eyes, and warmth gathered in his stomach as a tongue peeked out to wet dry lips.

"Yeah. I'm awake."

Without thinking, without caring about anything else at the moment, Steve launched forward and sealed his lips over Hadrian's in a desperate kiss. The doctor grunted as he weakly kissed him back, his hands shivering as they fisted on Steve's shoulders and Steve tasted tears.

He didn't know whose tears they were, and he honestly didn't care.

Hadrian was awake.

And nothing else mattered.

**cut**

"We weren't terrorists."

Steve halted in gathering the dirty dishes from the light lunch he prepared for Hadrian and looked at him.

It's been two days since Hadrian woke up, and his voice while still raspy was slowly gaining strength.

The doctor was staring out the window beside the bed, and the expression on his face was that of sorrow and melancholy.

"Hadrian, you don't need to…"

"No, I… I _have_ to." Hadrian stopped Steve as he licked dry lips and took a deep wavering breath.

Steve left the tray with the dishes on the nightstand. He took a seat beside Hadrian on the bed and gently took his right hand between his bigger, stronger ones. Hadrian swallowed difficultly and sighed.

"After the war the - the government started a crusade against creatures; Goblins, Werewolves, Vampires, Veela, they hunted all of them. It was like World War II, only without Hitler, and with hundreds of people screaming to gather all the creature's up, mark them and lock them away. My friends and I - we who actually fought in the war - we couldn't stand for that. First we tried to talk to them. For two years we were discussing things with the government trying to stop them any way we could. It was them that made the first move. They started rounding up first and second generation Werewolves to lock them up in what they called 'Labor Camps'. I think you know what that stands for without me needing to explain."

Steve's mouth went dry and his heart beat loudly in his ears.

"We couldn't allow that. So we fought. For a whole year we organized guerilla attacks, and we liberated hundreds helping them escape England, doing our best to keep victims at a minimum. A friend of mine started a campaign, and we were finally getting somewhere. The people of the Wizarding World started to see what our Government was doing, and they were angry. So our Government had a change of heart. All of sudden _we_ were the bad guys, and _they_ have been fighting for the rights of the Creatures all along. By that time most of the creatures already escaped Britain, and the Government made it seem as though we were the ones who hunted them and all but _slaughtered_ them. You won't find the truth written in any file, government or any other."

Tears filled Hadrian's eyes and he gasped for breath, trying to continue the story, and Steve wanted him to stop talking, but he couldn't find the words to say.

"We - We were betrayed by a few people who fought with us before and - and I was among the first ones who were caught. My friends managed to get me out, but not before my powers were bound. They placed me on a plain and sent me off to America. Last I - Last I heard about them was - was that they were either killed or captured. The Government concealed everything making martyrs out of all of us. I hadn't returned since. Without my magic and with nowhere to go, I signed up for college. I changed my name and built a life for myself here, but I…"

"Hey!" Steve finally managed to produce a sound, and he quickly gathered Hadrian into his arms, hugging him close as he entwined his fingers in Hadrian's hair while the doctor wrapped his arms around Steve's shoulders and buried his face in his neck. "I'm right here, Andy. I'm right here," he whispered as he rocked them lightly from side to side, his heart aching for the beautiful man in his arms.

Both of them suffered.

Both of them lost everything they knew.

But now they had each other.

And that was bound to be enough.

**cut**

"I'll be right back," Steve said and Hadrian gave him a small smile before Steve left his bedroom to see who was at the front door. It's been a week since Hadrian woke up, and Steve had yet to leave his side. A doctor came to check Hadrian yesterday, and according to him all Hadrian had to do now was regain his strength. He was completely healed.

They weren't expecting anyone, so Steve made sure to check if his shield was in the place where he always kept it, and he carefully approached the door. He peaked through the peak-hole and his whole body froze. He licked his lips and swallowed, taking a deep breath, and then he unlocked the door and opened them slowly.

"Hello," Sam and Natasha greeted him, looking worse for wear, and a part of Steve that still cared about both of them ached.

"Hey," he answered, but didn't invite them in.

"Steve, I - We - We heard Hadrian's awake," Natasha spoke up and Steve snorted.

"You mean you hacked into his medical files and waited for changes," he drawled and a small, weak smile tugged on Natasha's lips.

"Steve, you know we're sorry," Sam said and Steve looked at him. Sam glanced at Natasha as he took a deep breath. "We need to talk with you. We need to talk with him."

"About what?" Steve asked carefully, having half a mind to just close the door and walk away.

"After what happened, Sam and I read the files again," Natasha answered his question. "At a closer look, we found out that a lot of things didn't match up."

"So we went to Britain to dig deeper," Sam added and Steve frowned.

"Digging deeper than you were supposed to _brought_ us into this situation," he pressed out though his teeth, already closing the door.

"But we had to make things right!" Natasha jumped forward and placed her right hand on the door, even though she knew that she was nowhere near strong enough to stop them if Steve decided to close his door to them. "Please, Steve, we - we know the truth. We know Hadrian's innocent. We - We just came to apologize to him - to _you_."

"You know the truth?" Steve frowned and Natasha and Sam nodded. "The _whole_ truth?"

"We know that they were the ones protecting the rights of the creatures and that, when they figured out that they were wrong, the Government shifted everything around. They erased all evidence except - except him," Sam said and Steve frowned.

A part of Steve hoped that maybe some of Hadrian's friends survived, but apparently they didn't.

"Steve, please. We made a horrible mistake, but we're your friends. We were only watching out for you," Sam pleaded and Steve looked into his eyes.

"It will take a while until I can trust you again; especially around Hadrian," he spoke lowly.

"We can deal with that," Natasha said and Steve nodded.

"Alright," he murmured as he opened the door and took a step to the side. The two shuffled in, and Steve closed the door behind them. "Hadrian is still weak so he's in my bedroom. Don't mind the mess," he said as he walked past them and led the way.

"Steve?" the raven-haired man was weakly pushing himself up only to halt and widen his eyes when he saw Natasha and Sam walk in behind Steve.

"Hey, take it easy!" Steve rushed to Hadrian's side and took a seat beside him while Hadrian glanced from Steve to Natasha and Sam with confusion written over the pale, indrawn face.

"Dr. Parker, we came to apologize to you," Natasha said as she took a small step forward and found herself the sole target of those emerald orbs. She suddenly knew what had Steve so certain right from the start that Hadrian was a good man. Nothing was hidden in those out-worldly depths. They showed pain and suffering behind honesty and kindness, and incredible warmth. "What we did was wrong, and Sam and I - we just want to make things right again."

"Steve is our friend," Sam added. "And we were just looking out for him, but instead of doing proper research we came to the wrong conclusion, not taking everything into account. We're sorry for what you've been though. We're sorry for making you remember all of that, and for the injuries you've suffered. We made a mistake, and we're sorry,"

Hadrian looked at Steve as he licked his lips, and even though Steve gave Hadrian what was supposed to be a careless shrug, Hadrian could see in Steve's eyes that he had missed his friends and that he wanted to forgive them.

Hadrian's shoulders relaxed a bit and he gifted Steve with a small smile. "In all honesty," he spoke in a voice that was still slightly strained and raspy, "if I was in your place I would have done the same." Sam and Natasha let go of the breaths they were holding, and Steve smiled a small smile. "I would have made sure that my friend was safe. And I'm not so sure I would have taken a different approach."

"Does that mean we're forgiven?" Natasha asked with a hesitant smile and Hadrian chuckled.

"Yeah."

"But you have a lot to make up for," Steve added making his friends nod hurriedly.

"Whatever you say, man," Sam grinned and Steve chuckled at him.

"Do you want to stay for a bit? I have a few beers in the fridge," he said as a peace offering.

"If you two don't mind. We'd like to get to know Hadrian a bit better," Natasha answered and Steve nodded.

"Do you want me to make tea for you?" Steve asked Hadrian as he propped him up on several pillows.

"If you don't mind," he said and Steve nodded as he bowed down to kiss Hadrian's forehead tenderly.

"I'll be right back." Steve made his way out of the room, shooting a warning glance at Natasha and Sam, and once he was out, the two looked around, searching for a place to sit down.

"You don't have to be nervous. Steve loves you both. He was just hurt that you didn't trust his judgment," Hadrian spoke up and the two let go of the breaths they were unconsciously holding. Sam took a seat in the chair beside Hadrian's bed while Natasha looked at him asking for permission before she took a seat at the foot of the bed.

"We were wrong," she said. "And we're just trying to make things right again."

"I don't think it'll take long, at least not from my side. Like I said; I would have done the same. And Steve really cares about the both of you. He'll forgive you soon enough if he already hasn't."

"How are you?" Sam asked and Hadrian shrugged as he clasped his hands in his lap.

"I'm coming along nicely. My body is weak and I lost quite a bit of weight so it'll take a while for me to get back on my feet, but Steve's taking really good care of me, so I don't think it'll take too long. But what about you two? What have you been up to except roaming around good ol' England?" Steve came back just as Hadrian asked the question and handed out drinks before he took a seat beside Hadrian and wrapped his left arm around the smaller man's shoulders, placing their drinks on the nightstand.

"I've been contacted by Fury," Natasha said. "He's rebuilding S.H.I.E.L.D. from scratch. He's gathering agents all around the world, making sure that we do it right this time. I mean, there's no way to be a 100% sure, but the world needs S.H.I.E.L.D. _We_ need S.H.I.E.L.D."

"He called me too," Sam grinned. "I've been recruited."

"He hasn't contacted _me_ yet," Steve exchanged a glance with Hadrian.

"Well, you know Nick," Natasha smiled. "He does everything in his own pace." Steve and Natasha shared a knowing smirk while Sam and Hadrian chuckled.

"So!" Sam clapped his hands and grinned. "Are there any church bells ringing or are you two still dancing around the fact that you're perfect for each other?"

**cut**

"Easy. Easy," Steve murmured as he slowly helped Hadrian into the tub.

The raven-haired man was slowly regaining his strength, so he asked Steve for a _real_ bath. Steve joked that Hadrian just didn't want him giving him sponge-baths anymore, and that he was finding Steve's bedside manners lacking, but he understood the need to get out of bed even for a little while.

Two months of only having the IV giving him the necessary nutrients left Hadrian weak. He lost a lot of weight which could be seen on his thin body. Steve could almost count all of his ribs, and if he looked carefully enough, he could see exactly where his ribs were broken. Two weeks after he woke up, Hadrian was able to eat normal food if he ate slowly, and Steve was sure that with the right nutrients, Hadrian would return to full strength soon enough.

Steve quickly took his sweatpants off and slipped into the tub behind Hadrian, pulling him to his chest and smiling when the doctor sighed in content as he leaned his head back on Steve's left shoulder and entwined his fingers with Steve's on his stomach.

Steve placed a loving kiss on Hadrian's neck before he rested his head against his. The radio was playing quietly in the background as the warm water soaked their bodies and comfortable silence reigned between them.

"A few of your colleagues called," Steve murmured against Hadrian's ear. "They're sending you their best wishes."

"I'll have to call them to thank them," Hadrian answered in an equally quiet voice. "Even though I love the fact that we're spending this much time together, I can't wait to return to work."

Steve chuckled and kissed Hadrian's brow. "The moment you're strong enough I'm sure you'll be back and making people's lives better."

Hadrian chuckled and his eyes slipped closed.

_Stars shining bright above you.  
>Night breezes seem to whisper 'I love you'.<br>Birds singing in the sycamore trees;  
>dream a little dream of me.<em>

Hadrian sighed as Steve littered loving, open mouthed kisses over his right shoulder. A shiver traveled over his body, warmth pooling in his stomach, and he could feel Steve's own arousal against the small of his back.

They had never gone past several kisses before Hadrian's accident. That night they had every intention to finally sleep together, but any physical activities were delayed.

Now that Hadrian was completely healed and on the way to recovery, they could continue where they left off, and both of them were looking forward to this new step in their relationship.

Sure, Steve was determined to go slow. Hadrian was still weak, and he tired easily, but he could no longer hold back from caressing the warm, beautiful body in his arms.

Hadrian turned his head towards Steve and their eyes met, and the soldier teased Hadrian's lips into a light kiss with nips and licks.

_Stars fading, but I linger on, dear,  
>Still craving your kiss.<br>I'm craving to linger till dawn, dear,  
>Just saying this…<em>

Hadrian gasped and threw his head back as Steve lightly teased his right nipple with his right thumb in slow, tender, circling caresses as he traced the soft skin of Hadrian's stomach with the tips of his fingers on his way south.

He bit lightly into the soft skin just under Hadrian's ear, and the emerald-eyed man gasped as he arched up just as Steve took a gentle hold of his cock and circled the head with his thumb. He groaned and buried his face in Hadrian's shoulder when he moved back against him, putting pressure on his own erection, and Steve slowly started to pump Hadrian's hard length, biting into his bottom lip as his lover's movements brought him closer and closer to the edge.

_Sweet dreams 'til sunbeams find you.  
>Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you.<br>But in your dreams whatever they be  
>Dream a little dream of me.<em>

Hadrian came with a choked up cry, and Steve followed close behind with a strained grunt. As Hadrian sagged against him with his head resting on Steve's left shoulder, and dilated, glimmering eyes gazing at the ceiling, Steve raised his head to look at him. He cupped Hadrian's cheek with his right hand and tilted his head towards him, placing his lips over Hadrian's in a slow, languid kiss, conveying all the passion, love and desire he held in his heart for his beautiful lover.

Hadrian moaned as he nuzzled his forehead against Steve's left cheek and the soldier chuckled as he wrapped his arms around Hadrian protectively.

"Love you," Hadrian murmured and Steve's heart skipped a beat.

"Love you too."

**cut**

"You know, this is the first time you're cooking for me," Steve commented as he leaned back against the kitchen table while Hadrian danced around the kitchen. A month after he woke up he was already much better. He managed to put on a few pounds with Steve making sure he ate as much as he could handle, and with easy exercises he was slowly gaining back his strength.

"Well I think it was time," Hadrian chuckled and Steve smiled when he opened the oven and placed the already delicious looking dinner in it. He closed the oven door and straightened to look at Steve.

Captain America smirked when Hadrian looked at him from under messy bangs, hair now neck long gathered in a low messy ponytail.

"Now," he spoke in a sultry voice as he slowly prowled over to Steve, "we have about - an hour and a half to waste." He settled between Steve's parted legs, placing his dexterous hands on Steve's strong thighs as Steve hummed and took a firm hold of Hadrian's ass, pulling him close and making the smaller man's breath hitch in his throat as the movement made his awakening erection rub against Steve's.

"What can we do to spend the time?" Steve murmured against Hadrian's lips as the doctor moaned while Steve groped his firm little ass.

"I need to do some more exercise today," Hadrian drawled and Steve grinned.

Hadrian yelped when Steve picked him up swiftly and wrapped his arms around Steve's strong shoulders while the soldier carried him to _their_ bedroom.

A few days ago Hadrian and Steve went to gather Hadrian's stuff from his house, and the doctor officially moved in with Steve. Even though they lived together for a while now what with Steve taking care of Hadrian during his coma and recovery, the fact that now all of Hadrian's things were also there made it feel somehow more real.

Hadrian laughed when Steve threw him on their bed and he bounced on the soft mattress while Steve took his shirt and sweatpants off quickly. He kneeled on the bed and crawled over Hadrian. The doctor grabbed Steve's head between his hands, digging his fingers in the tender skin behind Steve's ears and pulled him into a scorching kiss while Steve arched into him, slowly sliding his body up Hadrian's and grinding his hips down against his.

Hadrian moaned into the kiss as Steve slid his right hand under Hadrian's t-shirt, caressing the soft skin and grinning against Hadrian's lips when he traced his ribcage, noting that his ribs weren't protruding as much as they did a few weeks ago. He moved back, kneeling between Hadrian's parted legs as he tugged the smaller man up and pulled his shirt over his head, Hadrian raising his arms to assist him.

The shirt didn't even touch the ground before Steve swooped in to kiss Hadrian pushing him back on the bed while the raven-haired man wrapped his arms around Steve's shoulders, holding him close.

His trousers were already uncomfortably tight as Steve kissed down Hadrian's neck, bracing his weight on his knees as he slid his hands up Hadrian's sides and to his armpits, teasing his nipples to hardness with his thumbs as his bit into his right collar-bone, drawing a startled yet but pleasure-fill hiss from his lover.

Hadrian's nails dug into Steve's back, leaving angry red marks in their wake as he dragged his hands up to Steve's shoulders making the soldier groan as he kissed his way to Hadrian's right nipple, taking it into his mouth and biting lightly into it before he soothed it with his tongue.

The smaller man arched up as Steve slid his right hand down his stomach and pushed it into his trousers and boxers, teasing the tip of his already rock hard cock with the tips of his fingers as he tugged on the waistband, pressing his palm down on Hadrian's straining length.

He was already coming short of breath when Steve all but ripped his trousers open and tugged them down together with his boxers as he bit into Hadrian's side strong enough to leave a mark. His eyes rolled back and he groaned as Steve littered kisses and light nips along his hip-bones pulling his clothes down agonizingly slow.

Hadrian fisted his left hand in Steve's hair and nudged him lower making him chuckle as he breathed hot air over the revealed head of his cock making Hadrian gasp and arch up, his whole body trembling with exertion.

Steve moved back and took the rest of his clothes off quickly, leaving him gloriously revealed to his hungry eyes. He licked his lips as he bowed down again, and his heart clenched tightly when Hadrian let go of a long guttural groan when Steve slowly licked the underside of his cock.

"Steve!" the doctor cried out as Steve took him into his mouth, inch by agonizing inch, almost making him come right then and there. Steve groaned around his length as he gently palmed his sack before he teased his entrance with the tip of his middle finger, moaning when he found him still loose and wet from their earlier _exercise_.

He pushed his finger in making Hadrian arch off of the bed with a wavering cry, and without any problems found that little pile of nerves which made his lover lose all sense of himself.

He found it amazing how with a few aimed touches and caresses he could tear away the tight control Hadrian kept over himself. It amazed him how he could turn Hadrian into a writhing, gasping mess with just a few kisses. It burned his body with possessiveness and pride, because he knew he was the only one who could tear away the younger man's calm and collected act, allowing him to see the passionate, lively creature which hid behind warm smiles and soft spoken words. He shivered with every gasping moan and hiccupping cry which he tore out of Hadrian's lips as he brought him closer and closer to completion.

He allowed Hadrian's cock to slip from his mouth as he rose up to look down at him, and his throat tightened when he saw his blushing face and parted lips. Long black lashes rested on flushed cheeks as tears of pleasure gathered on them. His hair fell out of his ponytail surrounding his head like a black halo as the sun broke through the window beside the bed, enveloping him in its warm glow.

Steve pulled his finger out of Hadrian, and faster than he maybe should have moved despite his visible recovery, Hadrian sat up and pulled Steve into a scorching kiss.

Steve groaned into his mouth as Hadrian slipped his hands down his front taking a firm hold of his weeping cock as he kissed down his chin and nibbled on his Adam's apple, slipping lower and lower until he reached Steve's thick, hard member. Steve fisted his left hand in Hadrian's hair as the smaller man slowly took him into his mouth and traced the curve of his spine with his right hand, slipping his fingers between his ass-cheeks and fingering his loosened entrance making Hadrian moan around his length sending a wave of pleasure up Steve's spine causing him to let go of a choked up grunt.

Unable to handle it for long, Steve grabbed Hadrian's arms and pulled him up, making the smaller man yelp as he wrapped his left arm around Hadrian's thin waist and hefted him up. Hadrian wrapped his arms around Steve's shoulders and his legs around Steve's waist while Steve reached under him and led the head of his cock to Hadrian's entrance. Taking a firm hold of Hadrian's left thigh with his right hand, Steve slowly lowered him on his weeping member, both of them holding their breaths as the feeling of completion and content washed over them making goose-bumps appear on their skin.

Hadrian breathed out as he rested his forehead on Steve's, their breaths mixing between them. Steve's arms were around him as though they would never let him go. His scent was filling his senses telling him that he belonged right there - in the arms of his soldier. His strength was his shield and his love was his comfort, and he needed nothing else in the world but him.

Steve pecked his lips lightly, nuzzling his nose against Hadrian's, drawing a breathless chuckle from him only for it to turn into a gasp when Steve rolled his hips up.

They moved slowly. Even time seemed to linger as they lost themselves in one another. Steve held Hadrian close to his chest, his cock trapped between their stomachs as Steve moved inside him in deep thrusts, constantly rubbing against Hadrian's prostate making the smaller man whimper and gasp as his hold on Steve's shoulders tightened and his nails dug into firm muscles.

"Steve I - I can't…"

"I know," Steve soothed in a whisper as he raised his right hand and cupped the back of Hadrian's head, pressing it into his shoulder as he buried his face in Hadrian's neck. The pace quickened, becoming erratic and fierce, and Hadrian came with a muffled cry, spilling his cum between them. Steve grunted and bit into his bottom lip as the clenching of the tight heat around him brought him over the edge and he emptied his load inside Hadrian, his whole body shivering with the force of his orgasm.

They sat like that for a few moments before Steve slowly laid them both down, pulling out of Hadrian with a hiss before he settled down beside him and pulled him into his arms.

Hadrian sighed as Steve wrapped his arms around him and tucked his head under his chin. The still of the lazy afternoon washed over them as Steve gently rubbed Hadrian's back with soothing caresses.

When he first met Hadrian he didn't even dream they would come to this, and yet there they were living together, loving each other.

It was more than he hoped for; much, much more.

Hadrian raised his head to smile up at Steve, and their lips met in a slow kiss.

"I love you, you know that, right?" Hadrian murmured and Steve chuckled before he kissed his forehead.

"I know. And I love you too."

Hadrian tightened his hold on him with a smile.

In the next moment something caught Steve's attention and he tensed up.

"Hadrian, do you smell something burning?" Hadrian tensed up for a second.

"Shit! Dinner!" He jumped out of bed and ran out and into the kitchen, groaning when he opened the oven and black smoke surged out. "Aw, damn it," he cursed and turned around to look at Steve when the man chuckled at him, and found him leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest in all of his nude glory.

"So! I guess we're ordering take out again."

**cut**

Hadrian and Steve stumbled into their apartment after Steve struggled with the lock, snickering and exchanging kisses as Steve slammed the door closed only to halt when someone cleared their throat.

"That's it! I'm changing the locks and putting bars on the windows," Steve muttered as he and Hadrian parted to look at the _guests_ occupying their living room.

Natasha was smirking at them, Sam was grinning and beside them stood two men Hadrian had yet to meet, but knew from a few photos Steve and Natasha showed him that they were Nick Fury and Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye.

"Clint Barton at your service." The archer wiggled his fingers at Hadrian and the doctor chuckled before he and Steve looked at Fury.

"To what do we owe the - ah, _pleasure_ of your visit," Steve drawled and Fury snorted.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. has been reinstated, and I am here recruiting," he said and Steve raised his left eyebrow at him.

"And you couldn't have called?" he bit out only to have Fury smirk at him.

"I _know_ we already have _you_, Captain Rogers. I'm here _recruiting_."

Steve's eyes widened in realization and Hadrian's eyebrows touched the line of his hair when everyone looked at him.

"Me?"

"Yes, _you_ Dr. Parker. We could sure use someone of your caliber and with you skills on the team."

"But I can't use magic anymore," Hadrian said with a frown and Nick chuckled.

"Let's just say that we have a way to _fix_ that," he drawled and Hadrian looked at Steve.

The soldier shrugged as though saying 'it's up to you', and Hadrian shifted his gaze to the others.

Nick's smirk grew when Hadrian pursed his lips, biting into the inside of his cheeks as he thought about the offer.

They all knew he was in when his handsome face shifted into a smirk and his eyes glimmered.

"When do we start?"

**cut**

(1) Daphne du Maurier, 'Rebecca'  
>(2) Daphne du Maurier, 'Rebecca'<br>(3) Daphne du Maurier, 'The Loving Spirit'  
>(4) unknown author<br>(5) Emily Bronte, 'Wuthering Heights'  
>(6) 'Shadow of Your Smile' was written by P. F Webster and J. Mandel, owned by EMI MILLER CATALOG INC.<br>(7) 'Dream a Little Dream of Me' was written by G. Kahn, F. Andre and W. Schwandt, owned by Lyrics © Warner/Chappel Music, Inc. Universal Music Publishing Group

**cut**

**Things are getting along nicely if I might say! I have just finished the first part of my education for a financial advisor!**

**I guess I'll soon start working for real!**

**Anyway!**

**I do hope you've liked this and that you'll stay tuned for the second part!**

**All my love,**

**Ms.**** Yuki**


	2. Trust Has To Be Earned

Written on **Erisa ken**'s request. Hope you'll like it!

**Disclaimer: **I claim no rights to the characters of Harry Potter and Avengers. They belong to their respective owners. The songs featuring in this chapter are 'Satellite' by Rise Against, and 'Seven Devils' sung by Florence and the Machine, in that order. I claim no rights to the songs.

**Warnings: **slash, explicit content, violence, blood

**cut**

_You can't feel the heat until you hold your hand  
>over the flame.<br>You have to cross the line just to remember  
>where it lays.<br>You won't know your worth now, son,  
>until you take a hit.<br>And you won't find the beat,  
>until you lose yourself in it.<em>

**cut**

"Ready?"

Orbs of pure emerald looked at Steve and lips which could be both loving and absolutely devastatingly cruel tilted into a smirk which did things to him definitely _not_ proper for this situation.

"Are _you_ ready, old man?" Hadrian teased and Steve snorted as he pulled his hood over his head and hefted his shield on his back.

"I'll show you old," he bit out and Hadrian laughed, and a second later they jumped out of the plane as one, the wind rushing beside them as they fell towards the hard ground closing in on them with each passing second.

Steve glanced at Hadrian and his guts churned when he saw the almost maniacal grin on his lover's face. Hadrian glanced at him, having the decency to _wink_ as he flipped himself over in the air, and Steve felt a wave of something electrifying and warm burst from his lover making him yelp as their falling was slowed down and they touched the ground without so much as a jolt.

"Don't you just _love_ magic?" Hadrian asked with a grin as he stretched his arms above his head, showing off his amazing body dressed in tight, black leather.

Steve snorted and forced himself to look away from Hadrian, knowing that his lover was smirking smugly at him.

"Mission, Hadrian; mission," he reminded as he started moving forward with Hadrian following after him, stealthy to the point at which only Steve's almost unnatural awareness of his raven-haired lover made it possible for him to know Hadrian was right behind him.

"This is my first mission since I've gotten my magic back, love. I'm a bit excited."

Steve suppressed a groan, _feeling_ the static of Hadrian's magic bursting just under the wizard's skin snapping against his back even through the shield.

It was a shock for everyone - even _Fury_ - when the wizards that worked for S.H.I.E.L.D. managed to unseal Hadrian's magic. The shockwave all but tore their hideout apart, and it _would_ have, had Hadrian not felt it and reined in his magic. Jeremy Carter and Daniel O'Malley - the wizards that released Hadrian's magic - were in complete shock. They heard about Hadrian's powers, but they never thought he would be _that_ powerful.

Steve had to admit that having Hadrian's magic back left a lot of possibilities.

And there Steve's mind went nto the gutter.

"Concentrate, love." Steve cursed under his breath and startled when Hadrian whispered against Steve's right ear, his body leaning against the shield on Steve's back.

Steve could swear Hadrian's warmth seeped through it to caress his skin, and he cursed again as he looked around, pointedly ignoring Hadrian's snickering.

"We're close. There are 16 of them on the inside and 2 on each entrance. Are we sticking to the plan or improvising?" Hadrian asked as they crouched behind a bush, and Steve pushed all thoughts to the back of his mind, concentrating on the task at hand.

"Stick to the plan. Improvise at need." Hadrian chuckled and Steve glanced at him, his cock twitching inside his pants when Hadrian's eyes actually shone bright green in excitement.

"Let's dance."

**cut**

_That's why we won't back down;  
>we won't run and hide.<br>Yeah, 'cause these are the things that we  
>can't deny.<br>I'm passing over you like a satellite,  
>so catch me if I fall.<em>

**cut**

"Heads up!"

Steve looked up and his heart skipped a beat when he saw Hadrian run into a guy, jumping just a second before it would be too late, grabbing the railing of the collapsing bridge to swing his strong legs hitting the guy across his head as he jumped down.

He landed right beside Steve and the Soldier immediately moved so they stood back to back.

"Everything ready?" Steve asked before he engaged into a fight with two of the few remaining Hydra supporters while Hadrian handled the rest without so much as breaking a sweat.

"Waiting for your orders, Captain!" Steve huffed as he caught his shield and turned around to see Hadrian standing above two guys who were trying to get up.

Key word - trying.

He raised an eyebrow and Hadrian just shrugged walking past them with a sway to his hips that wasn't there before, prowling like a predator.

"Just because I have magic now, doesn't mean I'm not partial to a more - ah - _physical_ approach," Hadrian drawled and Steve snorted as he rolled his eyes.

"Let's finish this," he said as Hadrian came to stand right in front of him, practically flattening his body with Steve's with his lips hardly a breath away from his.

"Do we really need to go hand in a report right away?" he murmured and Steve suppressed a groan, feeling the arousal he has been pushing down ever since he saw Hadrian in his new uniform 5 hours ago coming back with a vengeance.

"We've gotten lost on the way back."

Hadrian chuckled, only to startle Steve when he raised his right hand without even looking, and a guy hit the floor behind Steve with a pained grunt.

"I don't like being interrupted," Hadrian murmured as Steve chuckled and wrapped his right arm around Hadrian's waist, pulling the shorter man as close as possible, making him feel the effect he had on Steve.

"You were waiting for my order?" The Avenger spoke in a low growl and Hadrian hummed as he raised his right hand, bringing his wrist close to his lips - as much as their closeness allowed him to - and spoke into the receiver attached to the sleeve.

"Ready when you are," he said and the left corner of Steve's lips tilted up.

_*Took you long enough,*_ Natasha's voice came through their communicators and Hadrian chuckled.

"We've gotten a bit sidetracked. Now, would you _please_ do your part before the bad guys start waking up?"

_*I thought sex on missions was forbidden,*_ she drawled and Steve rolled his eyes with a groan while Hadrian snickered.

"No need to be jealous, Tash. Do your part, we're done," Hadrian answered.

_*Entering in 3,*_ she answered slyly, and Steve glared at Hadrian.

"Tell Fury we'll see him bright and early around noon tomorrow. Over and out." Hadrian broke the communication before Natasha could answer.

"Bright and early?" Steve drawled and Hadrian snickered.

"It will be _somewhere_ in the world."

And with that said the two disappeared with a loud 'pop' and a swirl of colors, while the Agents of the newly formed S.H.I.E.L.D. entered the old warehouse.

**cut**

_That's why we stick to your game plans and party lines,  
>but at night we're conspiring by candle light.<br>We are the orphans of the American Dream,  
>so shine your light on me.<em>

**cut**

Steve ouffed when Hadrian slammed him against the wall of the hallway of their apartment. He recovered quickly, slamming his lips against Hadrian's as he took a firm hold of the wizard's thighs and hefted him up, moving forward to press him against the opposite wall, grinding their hips together as air filled with arousal and need, adrenalin still pumping through their veins making their actions frantic and uncoordinated.

Steve heard the distinctive sound of his shield meeting the ground and moved back when Hadrian pulled his hood off to shake his head, but Hadrian grabbed fistfuls of his hair and pulled him into a kiss which was all teeth and forcefulness of a man desperate for release.

"Hadrian…"

"If you plan to reprimand me for being too reckless, would you mind leaving it for _after_ I've had my _wicked way_ with you," the wizard blurted out before he did _something_ with his legs which made Steve move away enough for Hadrian to stand on his own two feet, giving him enough space to grab fistfuls of the collar of Steve's uniform as he kissed him again and started pushing him towards their bedroom.

"You're pushy today," Steve commented even though his fingers were already fiddling with the zipper of Hadrian's tight shirt, fighting to pull it down since they were much too close to one another to allow free movement.

"I'll show you pushy," Hadrian growled and Steve yelped when Hadrian pushed him away, making him fall back on their bed. Steve hurried to take the shirt of his uniform off while Hadrian discarded his own on the floor carelessly, before straddling Steve's lap and rolling his hips, fisting his hands in Steve's hair as he kissed his hard and deep, leaving Steve no other choice but to take a firm hold of his ass and let him do as he pleased.

The Soldier moaned when he found himself naked beneath Hadrian as the wizard made him lie down and started biting and kissing down his chin and neck, and Steve had enough sane thought left to thank god for magic as he squeezed the globes of Hadrian's pert little ass and teased his entrance with his right index finger before Hadrian slipped too low for him to do so.

A guttural grunt escaped him when Hadrian took the head of his cock into his mouth and sucked hard, making Steve's eyes slip closed, every muscle in his body coil and air leave his lungs.

He cursed and fisted his right hand in Hadrian's hair while he grabbed a hold of the sheets with his left as Hadrian held his hips down, taking all of him into his mouth, coating his cock in saliva before swallowing around him, making Steve arch his torso off of the bed and tug on Hadrian's hair, _knowing_ that he wouldn't last long if the wizard didn't stop _right now_.

"God…" he breathed out when Hadrian let go of his cock, only to shiver when the wizard straddled him and reached behind himself to take a hold of Steve's hard length. Before Steve could warn him to go slow, Hadrian pushed the head of Steve's dick inside his entrance before he braced his hands on Steve's chest, and took him all the way in making the Soldier curse and grab a hold of the wizard's thighs with a bruising force.

He forced himself to open his eyes only to lose his breath when he saw Hadrian rising off of his dick with his eyes squeezed shut in concentration and biting into his bottom lip, his eyebrows furrowed and undiluted pleasure radiating from his whole body.

Steve couldn't think, couldn't do anything beside feel as Hadrian rode him hard and fast in search for release. He kept his eyes on Hadrian's face, doing his best to concentrate on him to stop himself from coming too soon, the feeling of Hadrian's tight, wet heat around his cock leaving him weak and breathless.

**cut**

_You can't fill your cup, until you empty all it has.  
>You can't understand what lays ahead,<br>if you don't understand the past.  
>You'll never learn to fly now 'til you're standing at the cliff.<br>And you can't truly love until you've given up on it._

**cut**

If the world knew that the only thing that could bring Steve down was Hadrian's touch, it wouldn't end well.

It was enough for Hadrian to place the tips of his fingers on Steve's shoulders and all the tension, all the stress would fade into peace and quiet, even before Hadrian got his magic back.

It was enough for Steve to feel Hadrian's warm breath anywhere on his body, and he would immediately feel heat coil in his lower stomach. It was enough for Hadrian to stand close to him, and the need to take him, to leave marks of his touch on Hadrian's body would almost overwhelm him.

Steve never thought he would feel like that. He never thought he had this aggressive side to himself, but Hadrian woke it up, and by the looks of it, he _loved _it.

"Steve…"

"Damn it!" Steve moved up, wrapped his right arm around Hadrian and flipped them over, starting a brutal, ruthless rhythm which punched the air out of Hadrian's lungs and made the wizard dig his nails into Steve's back, leaving red lines as they slipped up to Steve's shoulders and down his arms, urging the soldier on.

Bracing his weight on his left hand, Steve grabbed a hold of Hadrian's hard cock and pumped it in time with his thrusts, and within seconds Hadrian was coming into his hand. The rhythmic clenching of his tight channel brought Steve over the edge, and his hips twitched forwards a few times as he emptied his load into Hadrian, his arm almost folding under his weight.

He hissed when Hadrian wrapped his arms around him and pulled him to his chest, and Steve groaned as his body trembled and his cock twitched inside his wizard, milked for the last drops by Hadrian's still contracting heat.

"I'm heavy," he managed to press out over gulps of air and Hadrian hummed tiredly.

"See if I care," he mumbled making Steve snort. "Besides, half your weight is between my legs."

Steve bit Hadrian's chest right beside his left nipple making the wizard hiss and hit the back of Steve's head with his left hand. "Be nice."

Steve chuckled and kissed the spot he bit before he rested his head on Hadrian's chest, listening to Hadrian's strong heartbeat while the wizard brushed his left hand through Steve's damp hair.

"Get off. Nature calls," Hadrian muttered and Steve groaned, moving his hands to hoist himself up. He hissed as he pulled out of Hadrian and fell to his right with Hadrian slipping out of bed before Steve had the chance to catch him.

"You're cruel," he grumbled as he wrapped his arms around Hadrian's pillow. The wizard snickered as he grabbed Steve's white t-shirt off of the chair beside the bed and pulled it on, making Steve smirk when he saw that it fell to the middle of Hadrian's thighs.

Sometimes it was easy to forget that Hadrian was a lot smaller than him. His wizard often appeared bigger than life itself.

"You'll live," Hadrian glanced at him over his left shoulder and winked before he made his way out of the room.

"Bring some water on your way back, please!" Steve shouted after Hadrian and the wizard rolled his eyes with a huff, although a smirk was tugging on his lips.

He entered the living room only to stop in his tracks when he found someone sitting in the armchair in the corner of the room, their frame clad in shadows as the light of the moon shone in a straight line breaking through the window between Hadrian and the man.

"We _really_ need to bar our windows," he spoke, knowing Steve heard him when he heard the Soldier jump out of their bed and run to him.

Hadrian snapped his fingers and turned on the light, and both of them were left breathless and shocked when they saw who it was that broke into their apartment.

"Bucky?" Steve muttered in shock, his nudity concealed by Hadrian standing in front of him.

The man's lips tilted into a crooked smile and his eyes shone with recognition and amusement.

"Hey, Steven," he spoke in a tight voice. "It's been a while."

**cut**

Hadrian walked back into the living room with a tray in his hands, carrying coffee for all three of them. Steve was sitting on the couch, fully dressed, and Bucky was sitting in the armchair facing Steve.

Hadrian placed the tray on the table, taking their drinks off of it and placing them in front of them before he took a seat beside Steve and placed his right hand on Steve's left thigh.

"Don't get me wrong, Bucky. I'm - I'm happy to see you, but - but it's been _months._ I thought-…"

"I know. I just…" Bucky gulped and tried to smile for them, "I needed time. After my memory started coming back I was a mess. I traveled around as I remembered everything - everything they did to me. I needed to make peace with it all."

"Bucky, none of it is…"

"I know, Steve," Bucky cut him off and Hadrian gave Steve's thigh a reassuring squeeze. "I know that none of it is my fault, but I - I needed time to come to grips with all of it. I couldn't face you until I was sure their influence was gone completely. I've been keeping an eye on the two of you for at least a month now, not knowing how to approach you. I didn't know how I'd be received now that-"

"Just because Steve and I are together, Bucky, doesn't mean you aren't welcome," Hadrian spoke up and Bucky looked at him. "You are Steve's oldest friend. I'm glad I finally met you although you _could_ have chosen a better moment." Bucky chuckled while Steve blushed.

"I was surprised that neither one of you noticed me, although with the way the two of you rushed for the bedroom I doubt you would have noticed if your living room was swarming with people," he drawled teasingly and Steve groaned while Hadrian cleared his throat and bowed his head to try hide the blush which covered his cheeks.

"Yes well…" Steve cleared his throat when his voice broke, "we were a bit…"

"Horny?" Bucky smirked slyly. "Steve-m-boy, I thought I'd never see the day," he drawled and Steve groaned, hiding his face in his hands as he braced his elbows on his thighs.

"You weren't _supposed_ to see," he mumbled and Bucky chuckled while Hadrian covered his mouth with his left hand, stifling a laugh.

"I'll leave the two of you to talk," he said as he stood up.

"Hadrian…" Steve was interrupted by Hadrian bowing down to place a loving kiss on his lips.

"Talk," he said before he straightened, nodded at Bucky and left for his and Steve's bedroom.

Seeing the door close behind Hadrian, Steve took a deep breath and looked at Bucky who was staring right back at him with an unreadable expression.

"You always _did_ have a thing for strong brunettes with beautiful eyes, didn't you?" Bucky teased Steve dryly, and Steve snorted, shaking his head with an eye-roll.

"Bucky…"

"He's good for you," the Winter Soldier cut Steve off, and the captain looked at Bucky with a confused frown seeing his best - _once_ best friend staring at the door leading to Hadrian's and Steve's bedroom. "I don't need to be a genius to see it."

Steve swallowed audibly as he nodded. "Yeah," he spoke in a strained voice, "Andy, he's… He's my everything," Steve looked straight in Bucky's eyes, not missing the way the edges of Bucky's eyes tightened and jaw flexed. "Bucky, I…"

"You don't need to say it, Steve," Bucky cut him off again, lips tilting into a lopsided smirk. "I used to know you best, remember? I know how much you blamed yourself for everything, and you need to _stop_, alright? Now," he worried his bottom lip between his teeth for a second, looking for the right words to say, "I know that we can't turn back time. I know that - that we're _stuck_ the way we are, but…"

"You don't even need to ask," Steve interrupted, smiling at the man he loved like a brother, snorting when Bucky's eyes widened. "The guestroom is behind the first door to the left in the hallway. There's a bathroom attached to it, and there are clean towels in the cabinet. Get some rest. We'll - we'll just take it one day at a time, alright?"

"You don't mind…"

"No, Bucky," Steve stood up with Bucky following his example, and the Avenger rounded the low tea table to stand right in front of Bucky, not even hesitating to wrap the brown haired man into a warm hug. He wasn't surprised when it took Bucky a moment to return it, but when he wrapped his arms around Steve, the blue eyed man knew that he was slowly but certainly getting his best friend back. "It's good to have you back, Bucky. We'll figure this out somehow."

Steve's heart clenched when he felt Bucky tremble and tighten his hold on Steve, burying his face in Steve's neck as he let go of a grave sigh.

"Thank you, Steven," Bucky whispered and Steve squeezed his eyes tightly shut.

"Don't mention it."

**cut**

Bucky walked into the kitchen of Hadrian's and Steve's apartment less than half awake and dragging his feet, only to stop in his tracks and wake up almost fully because of the scene he stumbled upon.

Hadrian was rushing around the kitchen, completely unaware - or so it seemed - of the company he had, Bucky staring at him with eyes wide and mouth open. Even though Hadrian was doing what appeared to be at least 5 things at the same time, the kitchen was in perfect order, and the raven haired man seemed perfectly attuned to everything.

And while such multitasking was worth the highest praise, that wasn't what had Bucky gaping. It was the fact the plates were floating from a cupboard to settle on the table, followed by forks and knives before three mugs joined them, while Hadrian flipped over three pancakes with the skill of a master chief, checked up on the scrambled eggs with onion and bacon, and finished making coffee, all that before he opened the oven to pull out freshly baked blueberry muffins, if Bucky's nose was still good.

"Close your mouth, Bucky, something will fly in," Steve spoke in passing, making Bucky snap his mouth shut while Steve rushed over to Hadrian, pressed a quick kiss to his forehead, and pushed a folder into his hands. "I'll finish this, you take this to Fury."

"Will do," Hadrian said before he grinned at Bucky placing the folder on the table as he grabbed a jacket which was hanging off of the backrest of one of the chair. "Good morning, Bucky. Hope the breakfast suits your taste. I'll be back in a jiffy," as he said that he tugged on the leather jacket with the crest of S.H.I.E.L.D. on its back, kissed the top of Steve's haid as he grabbed the folder, and then - to Bucky's shock - _vanished_ in a swirl of black sand.

Strained silence settled over the room with Steve staring at Bucky, munching on a pancake with an amused smirk tilting his lips, while Bucky stared at the place Hadrian occupied a second ago, completely shocked.

"Did…" Bucky gulped and turned his head towards Steve, eyes never leaving the empty space in front of the stove. "Did that really happened?"

Steve chuckled and swallowed a bite, "This is how most of our mornings look like, especially since Hadrian joined S.H.I.E.L.D. and we started going to missions together."

"What was - is he - what the…"

Steve laughed at Bucky's shocked stuttering.

"Andy's a wizard," Steve supplied dryly, receiving an incredulous look for his efforts. "A very, _very_ powerful wizard."

Bucky swallowed and licked his lips before he slowly approached the table.

"I must have hit my head sometime in the past because, Steve, wizards _don't exist_." Steve let go of a booming laugh, earning a glare from Bucky.

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, Bucky, but wizards _do_ exist, since I am - to my great fortune - dating one."

"But - but _how_?!" Bucky looked like he was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and Steve decided to forgo the delicious breakfast to try explaining everything to Bucky before the man killed himself trying to figure everything out.

"How wizards exist or how did I end up dating one?" Steve asked as he pushed his plate to the side and braced his elbows on the table.

"Erm, _both_?" Bucky muttered, still looking like a lost pup, and Steve sighed.

"Well, I don't exactly know how wizards exist, but as for how I ended up dating Hadrian, I guess it all started when you dragged me out of the river after we fought…"

**cut**

"…Natasha and Sam finally understood that Andy isn't some maniacal mass murderer, and several months later Andy was recruited by Fury who…" Steve's lengthy explanation was interrupted by a loud pop, and Bucky jumped in his seat, eyes widening when he found Hadrian standing right behind him, muttering very colorful curses under his breath as he marched for the coffee machine. "I take it your meeting with Nick didn't go well," Steve commented dryly, both he and Bucky watching as Hadrian drank one cup of coffee in one go before pouring another.

"What gives it away?" Hadrian muttered before wrinkling his nose at the half empty mug of coffee. "I need something sharp."

Hadrian started digging through cupboards while Steve looked at Bucky who looked entirely too confused.

"I get it that I owe Fury _more _than a favor," before Steve could say something, Hadrian spoke up in a hissing voice, "I _really_ do, but sending us from one mission to another just because he thinks I'm this _all powerful wizard_ who can just _fix everything with a flick of my wand_ - REALLY what the HELL IS HE THINKING?!"

"Andy," Steve stood up, raising his hands calmingly, and Bucky suddenly felt the need to disappear when Harry gulped down a full glass of something that resembled scotch while the captain came to stand in front of him, "you need to calm down and tell me what happened."

"What happened?!" Hadrian snapped and rounded on Steve, arms flailing and beautiful face full of anger. "I'll tell you what happened! Nick has another mission for us! We just came back from one! _And_ there was the one _before _that! _And_ the one before that one! What does he think we run on?! AIR?!" The wizard's voice broke as he paced the kitchen, waving his arms as he spoke, and Steve shot Bucky an apologetic glance, making Bucky wonder if Steve ever had to handle Hadrian like this before.

If the captain's calm attitude was any indication, he did.

"I mean, I _know_ that I'm more apt to handle some things, but there are _certainly_ other agents who are just as capable as I am!" Hadrian kept ranting.

"Andy, please," Steve spoke up, catching Hadrian as he passed beside him. He placed his hands on Hadrian's heaving shoulders before he slipped them down to his elbows, looking in Hadrian's vivid emerald orbs, his own blue ones calming and pleading. "You aren't angry that we're going on a new mission. Tell me what it's supposed to be. I can't help you if you keep ranting and raving like this."

Hadrian took a deep breath and stepped away from Steve, raising his hands to rub his face in weariness and frustration. He brushed his hands through his hair, fisted them on his slim waist, and then looked at Steve. His back was turned on Bucky so he couldn't see Hadrian's expression, but he _could_ see Steve smiling at Hadrian calmingly, blue eyes full of understanding and love.

"He's sending me back," Hadrian spoke in a broken, strained voice, and both Steve and Bucky frowned in confusion.

"Back _where_?" Steve asked and Hadrian sighed, walking over to a cabinet to lean back against it with his arms crossed over his chest.

"To Britain," he answered in a small voice, and Bucky wondered how Steve didn't get a whiplash from how quick he went from worried and calming to fuming.

"What?" Bucky had never heard Steve speak in that voice. That singe word was laced with so much anger and hatred that Bucky was glad he wasn't on the receiving end of that fury.

Sure, he knew that he could take Steve on and fight him on equal grounds, even _win_ if he fought dirty, but since Steve managed to tell him what the Wizarding World did to Hadrian and his anger was well based, Bucky _definitely_ didn't want to be a wizard right then.

"S.H.I.E.L.D. picked up on some suspicious things going on in Wizarding Britain," Hadrian answered as he raised one had to perch his forehead on it, hiding his face from Steve and Bucky. "I don't know exactly what is going on, but Fury wants me to infiltrate and see what I can find."

"Alone?" Bucky was sure that Steve wouldn't sound any more frightening if he was screaming his throat raw. He didn't remember his friend ever sounding or looking as dangerous as he did then, eyebrows meeting in a frown and baby-blue eyes darkened with anger. Steve's broad shoulders were hunched as though he was ready to fight, and his hands were clenching and unclenching by his sides as though he was just _looking_ for something to hit.

Or some_one_.

"Apparently, he is _willing_ to allow me to make my own team," Hadrian sighed as he allowed his hands to fall to his sides and tilted his head back, eyes focused on Steve, looking tired and drained.

"Good," Steve bit out. "Have something to eat while I get changed. We'll be paying Nick a visit."

"Steve…" Hadrian sighed tiredly, but Steve would have none of it.

"We need to see him concerning Bucky either way." Before the spoken man could react Steve continued with "He already agreed to give Bucky amnesty if he ever showed up, but I need to make sure he knows he would be losing a lot if he goes back on his word. I tore S.H.I.E.L.D. down once, I can do it again."

Without waiting for an answer, Steve marched right out of the room leaving Bucky alone with Hadrian, who rubbed his face again with a deep breath. "I'm sorry," he said, much to Bucky's surprise. "I don't usually lose my composure like that," he drawled dryly as he took a seat at the table and Bucky gulped and nodded while Hadrian took a clean plate from where it waited for him in his usual seat and took a few pancakes and some maple syrup.

"Since Steve told me everything he could about you, I can understand," Bucky said and Hadrian glanced up at him as he chewed. Swallowing, he placed the fork and knife on the table before bracing his elbows on it and entwining his fingers in front of his head, looking at Bucky with an unreadable stare.

"Bucky," he stopped as though looking for the right words. "Steve told me everything that happened, from the day you joined the army back during the second World War until the day he and you fought on that Helicarrier."

Bucky frowned as those strange emerald eyes dove into his as though they were both searching for something and delivering a message.

"While I understand that you didn't have much choice in what you did, and in the end you saved Steve's life, I want you to know that there is nothing I wouldn't do to protect Steve. Hurt him again in any way, shape or form, _betray_ him whether of your free will or under a bloody _mind_ control spell or some other _bullshit_, you will find out exactly _why_ those bloody sons of bitches were so afraid of me that they thought of a whole ploy to turn the whole Wizarding World against me just so that they could get rid of me. I've taken down a man who split his soul into pieces, _literally_, just so he could live forever. I'll take you down with much less effort, are we clear?"

"I would never…"

"I know," Hadrian cut Bucky off before he straightened and took the knife and fork into his hands again, and Bucky knew that he was being dismissed. He was saved from being any more uncomfortable than he already was by Steve walking back into the kitchen dressed in his uniform but without the hood.

"Ready when you are," Steve said, bowing down to place a kiss on Hadrian's lips, the wizard tilting his head back to accept it, looking as though he didn't just threaten Bucky.

"Should I dress for the occasion?" Bucky asked, pushing everything that happened in the past two hours into the back of his mind for later analyzing. Steve raised an eyebrow at him in amusement, eyes darting all over Bucky's body taking in the faded jeans and black t-shirt.

"Do you _have_ anything to change into?" he drawled teasingly and Bucky rolled his eyes.

"It's been months, Steve," he returned equally as he stood up. "Got myself a whole new wardrobe."

"Got anything _other_ than jeans and t-shirts?" Steve smirked at Bucky who huffed and waved him off on his way out of the room.

"According to everything you've told me, jeans and t-shirts are _more_ than enough for Nick Fury," Bucky said before he exited the kitchen, leaving Steve and Hadrian alone.

Hadrian finished his breakfast knowing that Steve was watching him from here he was leaning back against a cabinet with arms crossed over muscled chest.

"Hadrian…"

"Steve," the wizard cut him off, glancing at the captain over his right shoulder, and Steve snapped his mouth shut. Before he said anything, Hadrian stood up and snapped his fingers, dishes and what was left of breakfast disappearing without a trace. "I know you heard me," he finally said before turning around to face Steve who sighed and pushed away from the cabinet, coming to stand right in front of Hadrian who was looking up at him with arms crossed over his chest.

"You know he was being controlled," Steve murmured, placing his hands on Hadrian's elbows, looking into those viridian orbs imploringly.

"Steve, I know how much you've wanted your best friend back," Hadrian spoke in a voice hardly above a whisper, his own eyes imploring Steve to listen to him, "and I _know_ that he was brainwashed into doing what he did, but you also need to understand where I'm standing. Mind control isn't possible over someone if that person has a stronger will of the one trying to control them. Bucky - he…" Hadrian looked away from Steve for a moment before facing him again, "he may have loved you like a brother, and _yes_, I don't understand the technicalities of controlling someone's mind with science, but he… I don't know _what_ is going through his mind. I just know that I _can't trust him_ without knowing him. Steve, he almost _killed you_. You turned your back on Natasha and Sam for much less."

"Hadrian, that's not the same…"

"It is in my book!" Hadrian hissed while Steve let go of him, turned his back on Hadrian and brushed his fingers through short pepper-blond strands. "Steve, I don't want you to get hurt!"

"He won't hurt me, Hadrian!" Steve insisted, rounding on the wizard, eyes full of conviction. "You don't know him!"

"Do _you_?!" Hadrian snapped and took a step forward, hands falling to his sides, eyes _begging_ Steve to understand him. "It's been years, Steve! And while I'm glad you have your best friend back, I only want you to be careful!"

"Careful? Oh no, you are _not_ the right man to tell _me_ to be careful," Steve bit out and Hadrian leaned back, a confused frown marring his handsome face.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he murmured and Steve chuckled darkly.

"_You,_ who did one careless thing after another - joined S.H.I.E.L.D. just to get your magic back, can _not_ preach to _me_ about being careful!" Steve snapped at Hadrian.

"I didn't join S.H.I.E.L.D. just to get my magic back and you _know_ that!" Hadrian answered equally. "We've talked about this, Steve! I've joined S.H.I.E.L.D. because of _you_, because I couldn't - _wouldn't_ let you fight alone if I could help you!"

"Oh, so now I can't take care of myself?!"

"I never said that!" Hadrian's voice broke as he shouted at Steve who took a step back. Sure, he heard Hadrian raise his voice before, but it was never at _him_. He never raised his voice at him.

As a matter of fact, this was the first time they had an argument about _anything_. Steve couldn't even remember what they were really fighting about.

"Steve, I…" Hadrian shut his mouth and looked away from Steve, but he didn't make it fast enough for Steve not to see that his emerald eyes were somehow glassier than usual. "I just want you to be careful," he whispered and Steve felt as though he deflated, feeling like a right bastard.

"I'm sorry," he murmured and walked over to Hadrian to wrap his strong arms around the smaller man. "I'm sorry, I just…" he sighed and buried his face in Hadrian's neck, muscles uncoiling when he felt Hadrian's arms encircle his waist.

"I know," the wizard whispered and hugged Steve tightly, the two just standing like that for a few moments, before clearing of a throat made them step away from one another.

"Ready when you are," Bucky repeated Steve's earlier words and the two chuckled, Hadrian discreetly rubbing his eyes while Steve brushed his right hand through his short hair.

"Hadrian will apparate us over to Nick. It's the fastest way to get there," Steve said and Bucky raised an eyebrow.

"Is apparating that popping thing you did earlier?" He asked as he approached Hadrian and Steve, and the wizard chuckled.

"Yeah," he nodded and offered his left hand to Bucky while Steve took Hadrian's right hand, "just try not to puke. I just had this suit dry cleaned."

And before Bucky could comment on Hadrian's warning, they disappeared with a loud pop.

**cut**

Hadrian leaned back in the uncomfortable chair and rubbed his face with his hands before he glanced at the door leading to Fury's office. Bucky and Steve have been in there for an hour already while Hadrian sat in the small reception room reading the file which he was given immediately upon arrival about the mission he was supposed to take.

He read it several times already, and hated what he found in it.

_Have all our fights been in vain?_ Just as he thought that, the door of Fury's office opened and Steve and Bucky walked out at the same time looking relieved and annoyed which was - in Hadrian's honest opinion - quite a feat.

"Well, Andy, allow me to introduce Agent James Buchanan Barnes," Steve drawled dryly with a smirk while Bucky rolled his eyes and huffed.

"What?" Hadrian raised an eyebrow and Steve snorted.

"Fury saw it fit to put Bucky 'under parole'. He would be free for as long as he agreed to be under constant watch and worked for S.H.I.E.L.D. for the next 10 years," Steve explained shortly and Hadrian's eyebrows disappeared under a messy fringe.

"And _who_ will be the one watching over him?" He drawled _almost_ carelessly, and Steve grinned at him while Bucky wiggled the fingers of his metallic hand at Hadrian with a grin of his own.

For someone who was almost expressionless all those months ago - according to what Steve told him - Bucky was sure showing a lot of expressions.

"Great!" Hadrian clapped his hands. "I make breakfast at 7:00 sharp in the morning, lunch is served promptly at 13:00 if we're not on a mission, and as for dinner what you catch is what you eat. Fridays and Saturdays are movie nights, and Sundays are barbeque with Sam, Tash and Clint, when we - or _they_ - are not on missions of course. The guestroom is yours, steer away from the stove and oven if you value your life - as a matter of fact, steer away from the kitchen as a whole. Steve almost burned the whole apartment block once, so you understand why I'm being cautious - and _please_, if you're bringing someone over, tell us so we can scurry away. Anything I've missed?" he spoke all that in a single breath before glancing at Steve who snorted after a minute and rolled his eyes.

"I think that's all," he muttered and looked at Bucky who was still gaping at Hadrian. "Anything on your mission?" Steve walked over to Hadrian and Bucky rushed to follow him, still a bit shaken.

"I can tell you everything on our way there," Hadrian answered.

"_Our_ way there?" Steve asked as he glanced at Bucky, and Hadrian hummed.

"Yes, I suppose so," he muttered before smiling at Bucky. "You should feel lucky. You'll be one of the few muggles not related or married to a witch or a wizard who will get to see the Wizarding World up close and personal."

"What?" Bucky asked weakly, looking to Steve for an explanation, finding it difficult to follow Hadrian.

"Andy gets to choose his team for his mission, and he _apparently_ chose _us_," Steve explained and Hadrian's smile grew bigger - almost shark-like.

"So, my first mission is…"

"Infiltrating the Wizarding World, finding the ones accused for national treason - or according to what I've read, plotting to turn the whole damn world on its head - and bringing them in without starting a world wide panic and/or causing the revelation of the Wizarding World. Sounds fun, doesn't it?" Hadrian finished with a sweet smile, and while Steve rolled his eyes and huffed, Bucky raised his eyebrows and nodded slowly.

"I don't think your definition of fun and mine see eye to eye," Bucky said slowly and Harry clapped his shoulder, the metal of Bucky's left arm producing a strange hollow sound.

"Well at least we'll get to know each other, right?" Hadrian grinned and Bucky looked at Steve almost as though he was asking for protection.

"Right."

**cut**

"Walk straight, keep your heads up and _please_ try not to look like you're here for the first time," Hadrian pleaded looking at Steve and Bucky who were looking around the room behind Leaky Cauldron suspiciously, although at the same time amazed and almost _giddy_.

Hadrian took a deep breath and faced the wall which would soon open into a doorway leading into Diagon Alley.

"This just _screams_ disaster," he muttered under his breath and tapped the designated bricks with the back of his fingers, making Steve and Bucky jump back when the bricks popped out and started to rearrange themselves.

Hadrian looked at them over his right shoulder and smirked at their amazed expressions. "Welcome to Diagon Alley," he said. "Let's go. Our contact should already be waiting for us."

**cut**

Bucky and Steve looked at Hadrian from where they were sitting across from him on the terrace of a café in Diagon Alley. If Steve didn't know the wizard he would say that Hadrian was merely enjoying the view, watching families, couples and single people walking around, smiling and laughing, and simply enjoying themselves.

But Steve knew Hadrian.

He knew that the hand fisted over Hadrian's mouth wasn't there to hide a small smile. He knew that Hadrian's eyes weren't fondly gazing at the simple life revolving in front of them. He knew that those hunched shoulders and parted legs weren't a sigh of comfort and relaxation.

Hadrian was analyzing.

He was taking everything in and sorting it out.

"What can you see?" Steve asked. He and Bucky couldn't see anything unusual except for - well, _everything_.

But Hadrian?

Hadrian knew this world. He knew its people.

And if Steve knew Hadrian, the wizard was _not_ happy.

"Nothing," Hadrian muttered around his fist. "Everything."

Steve and Bucky frowned and exchanged a glance as Hadrian sighed and sat up, turning to cross his forearms on top of their table. Steve caught Hadrian's right index and middle finger twitching and less than a second later the two solders felt a cold shiver pass over them.

Their contact had yet to show up. He was 40 minutes late. Neither of the three felt good about it, but they couldn't leave.

"Nothing can be seen if you don't look hard enough," Hadrian muttered, leaning over the table, and Steve and Bucky copied him careful of the glasses in front of them. "But I've seen enough."

"Seen _what_?" Bucky asked, wrinkling his nose in confusion. Neither he nor Steve were rookies or inexperienced, but if the expression on Steve's face was an indicator, just like Bucky he has seen nothing.

"Hiding in the alley to my left," Hadrian took his drink into his hand and spun the glass a bit before taking a sip, "three Aurors. On our way here, I've seen 8 more hiding in various places, some in the open and others on roofs or in alleys. I have no doubt that others are in the crowd wearing civilian outfits."

"What does that mean?" Bucky asked quietly and Hadrian looked at him before turning his gaze to Steve.

"This is all an illusion," Hadrian bit out and sat back in his chair, arms crossing over his chest and head tilting towards the street, eyes filling with something akin to sadness. "Look at their faces. Look closely," he whispered and Steve and Bucky looked around. While the children were smiling with all the honesty of childish innocent naivety, the smiles on the faces of the adults were - upon closer inspection - forced. "This is not how freedom looks like," Hadrian bit out, and when the two looked at him they saw that his hands were fisted around his arms as though he was holding himself back from standing up and doing something he would later regret. "This is tyranny. This is slavery," he pressed out through his teeth. "This world - The Wizarding World has been turned into a…"

"Ghetto," Steve finished for Hadrian and the wizard looked at him. "They are all trapped here, aren't they?"

Hadrian swallowed audibly and gave a minute nod.

Before either one of them could say anything more, a loud cry of 'Halt!' was heard and the people on the street jumped to the side, women screaming and pulling their children into their arms.

"Halt!" was heard once again, and before Steve or Bucky could do anything, Hadrian was on his feet and running out, the two having no other choice but to follow him.

Hadrian stopped in his tracks when he was in the middle of the street only to freeze and gape at what happened next.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

A man in his late thirties fell to the ground dead, 7 Aurors coming to a stop several feet away from him.

"Everyone go back to your business!" One of them snapped - the one who killed the man - putting his wand back into the thigh-holster before his eyes fell on Hadrian, Steve and Bucky flanking his sides. "You!" He pointed a finger at Hadrian, and within seconds they were surrounded by Aurors who had their wands pointed at them.

Hadrian stood to full height as the captain of the Auror Force approached him, dull brown eyes darting all over Hadrian's form with a sneer.

"Your identification," he hissed in Hadrian's face.

"Don't have any," Hadrian bit out in an American accent much to Steve's and Bucky's surprise. "Didn't know I'd need it."

"_Strangers_ are not allowed into the Wizarding World of Britain without proper documentation," the captain pressed out through his teeth standing just a breath away from Hadrian trying to intimidate the Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Since when can't wizards from all around the world visit Wizarding London at their will?" Hadrian asked, and Steve could hear in the tone of his lover's voice that Hadrian was hardly holding himself back from cursing the captain where he stood.

"I don't like you," the captain murmured, his face an inch away from Hadrian's, and the raven haired wizard leaned back, nose wrinkling in distaste. The captain squinted at him, his own nose wrinkling. "You look familiar…"

"Evan, come on," Steve jumped in before things went south, placing his hand on Hadrian's shoulder. Hadrian glanced at him and Steve suppressed a shiver when he saw the dark look in Hadrian's eyes. "We must have missed the memo."

Hadrian grunted before he took a step back, coming to stand between Steve and Bucky.

"Will it be alright if we leave now and come back after we've made the proper documentation?" Bucky asked, catching on to what Steve was doing, and the captain sneered at them, looking at the three Agents as though they were dirt under his shoes.

"Jackson and O'Hara will escort you out," the captain drawled, "and if I see you again without your visiting visa, I'll lock you up so deep in a dungeon not even a blood tracking charm will find you." He poked Hadrian's chest for emphasis while two Aurors came to stand beside Bucky and Steve. "Show them out boys!" he snapped as he turned his back on the three who saw the dead man being lifted on a stretcher none too gently and carried away.

They followed the two Aurors out of Diagon Alley and back into Leaky Cauldron with Steve glancing worriedly at Hadrian who had his head bowed making it impossible for his lover to see his face.

Once they were safely out on the streets of muggle London, Steve placed his left hand on Hadrian's right shoulder. "Andy…"

"Let's go," Hadrian cut him off and walked away going in the direction of their hotel.

Steve and Bucky exchanged a glance and followed after Hadrian.

They both understood one thing.

If this wasn't personal to Hadrian before, now it sure as hell was.

**cut**

"Are you sure you want to do this alone?" Steve asked, leaning against the doorframe leading to his and Hadrian's room where the wizard was getting dressed into a pair of tight, black trousers and a skin tight turtleneck.

He took a seat on the bed to tug on his black combat boots before getting up and grabbing his unmarked jacket, which told Steve that Hadrian was avoiding the risk of anyone finding out he was working for S.H.I.E.L.D. if he were to be caught.

And that didn't make Steve feel good at all.

"Andy…"

"Steve," the wizard cut him off, speaking for the first time since they came back and he told them that he would be going in alone when night fell. "You and Bucky don't know Diagon Alley like I do. If our assumption is correct, then the man that was killed today was our contact. I can get in and out without anyone seeing me. I'll bring as much information as I can gather, and then we'll think of what to do."

"Andy, this has _nothing_ to do with the information Fury gave us about this," Steve insisted as he pushed himself away from the doorframe and came to stand right in front of Hadrian. "You can't expect me to let you go alo…"

"But you will," Hadrian cut him off again, but when he saw that Steve's eyes were full of worry and fear, his expression softened, a sigh escaped thin lips, and to Steve's surprise, Hadrian's arms wrapped around Steve's waist as the wizard hid his face in his lover's chest.

"Andy…"

"I didn't fight for this, Steve," Hadrian's muffled voice reached Steve's ears, but he could still hear the sorrow and pain in Hadrian's voice. "My friends didn't die for this. I didn't lose everything for this!"

Steve cursed under his breath and hugged Hadrian tightly. He didn't know how Hadrian felt and he sure as hell didn't _want_ to, but never the less, his heart hurt for his lover. "Do what you have to," he spoke in a strained voice. "But if you're not back before dawn I'm calling Fury and bringing S.H.I.E.L.D. down upon them. Let's see how they'll handle hundreds of highly trained men and women with high tech guns."

Hadrian chuckled wetly and moved back a bit to look up at Steve. "I'd like to see how they'd handle Tash, Sam and Clint," he muttered jokingly and Steve chuckled. "You know I love you right?" Hadrian whispered tenderly.

Steve smiled at him lovingly and bowed down to kiss Hadrian. "I know. And I love you too," he murmured against Hadrian's lips, feeling the wizard shiver against him.

"I'll be back before dawn," Hadrian whispered and moved out of Steve's embrace. "Don't go out," with that said Hadrian disappeared with a 'pop', leaving Steve standing in the middle of their room.

"We can't assume how bad this is."

Steve turned on his heel and found Bucky standing in the doorway, hands pushed inside the pockets of his dark gray hoody.

"I know," Steve rubbed his face with his hands, letting go of a grave sigh. "Do you think we should contact Fury right away?"

"I think we should wait for lover-boy to come back," Bucky answered and Steve nodded. "Though what we'll do until then, I have no idea. I can't seem to figure out the damn TV."

Steve laughed at that while Bucky smirked at him, and a moment later, when he managed to stop laughing, Steve walked over to him and clapped his back as they made their way into the living room of their two bedroom suit.

"Let's see if we can figure it out together."

**cut**

Hadrian cursed under his breath and ducked into the shadows of an alcove, watching as three Aurors passed beside him before running soundlessly down the street.

He already checked five safe-houses he knew were used during the second war, two of which were nothing but burned out shells of what they used to be, and three of which were empty.

He hoped he found _something_ in the last one, because the longer he stayed there, the greater the chance was that he would be caught.

Coming to a halt, he peeked around corners to see if the air was clear and then crossed the street, entering one of the small alleys leading to Knockturn Alley.

He stopped in front of a brick wall, emerald eyes focusing on the darkest brick in the assembly and he placed his right hand flat on it.

"Please work, please, please, work," he whispered as he squeezed his eyes tightly shut and pushed his magic into the brick. He stepped back, eyes snapping open and relief surging though his body when a door appeared in front of him.

A second later a hand grabbed him from the darkness and pulled him in, and Hadrian found himself slammed against a wall, air surging out of his lungs and light blinding him for a second, only for him to tense up when he felt a tip of a wand pressed against his throat.

"Who in the bloody fuck are you and how did you find this place?" A familiar voice made Hadrian's eyes snap open, and when he got used to the weak light, he stopped breathing all together.

Gray eyes were staring into his, squinting in suspicion, platinum blond hair appearing to be golden in the orange light of a torch.

"Draco?" Hadrian gasped out, heartbeat so fast he thought his heart would beat its way out of his chest.

The man holding him at wand-point blinked, but a moment later, gray eyes widened in shock and the pressure of the wand against Hadrian's throat lessened.

"P-potter?" The former Slytherin muttered in shock.

"Potter?!" Despite the wand pressed to his throat Hadrian tilted his head to the side only to feel tears sting his eyes. Several other torches lit up and Hadrian's eyes widened.

"It is - it _is_ you!" A woman screamed in joy and within seconds Hadrian was enveloped in a pair of trembling arms.

"Hermione?" Hadrian gasped out not really believing what was going on or realizing that he was crying.

"You're alive. You're alive!" The Witch whimpered into his neck while Hadrian stared at the faces of the people behind Hermione.

"Luna, Bill…" he whispered, eyes settling on a face he hadn't seen since the owner was several months old, but he would know it anywhere.

"Hell, godfather."

Hadrian felt weak.

"Teddy..."

**cut**

Hadrian stared at the people gathered in front of him. Some faces he knew and his heart ached like mad at seeing them. Other faces were familiar or completely unknown, but the only thing he could see at that moment was this group of people he mourned years ago, and yet they were right there in front of him.

Not all of them though.

And that broke his heart all over again.

"Harry, what are you doing here?"

Hermione… Smart, beautiful Hermione whose curly brown hair was streaked with much too early whites, whose intelligent brown eyes were full of sorrow and pain, and yet there was still fight in her.

"I mean, it's not that we're not happy you're here and apparently have your magic back, but… but we thought you were gone," Hermione whispered and Hadrian gifted her with a small smile.

"It's not Harry Potter anymore, 'Mione," he spoke in a raspy voice. "It's Hadrian now. Hadrian Parker. And as for why I'm here?" He took a deep breath and held it for a moment. "I'm an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Shield?" Bill asked and leaned forward with an intrigued frown, and Hadrian smiled at him.

"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division," he drawled and Hermione snickered.

"Someone _really_ wanted your acronym to be S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't they?" she asked and Harry laughed in a subdued way.

"There's a story behind that, but this is not a time to say it. What I - what I need to know is how - how all of you are even _alive_. Last I heard you all went missing. I thought you were all dead," Hadrian whispered, eyes imploring them to give him an answer.

Hermione, Luna, Draco, Bill and Teddy exchanged glances, and to Hadrian's surprise Teddy was the one who spoke up. "It was my grandmother who saved most of us."

Hadrian frowned in confusion and leaned forward in interest, and Teddy took a deep breath.

"After Uncle Ron and Aunt Mione got you out of Azkaban and sent you off to America, most of us went into hiding. I was too young then to remember, but grandma was determined to - if she couldn't help all those who fought to _change_ something, then she would at least save as many as she could," the 15 year old said.

"We are the only ones from your squadron that survived," Draco said and Hadrian swallowed difficultly, even though his mouth was dry. "We went into hiding, looking for a way to get out of Britain, and we did it. With Andromeda's help we made it to France, and we stayed there until 3 years ago."

"Why did you come back?" Hadrian asked.

"I called them back," Teddy answered, bowing his head in what appeared to be shame. "Grandma was dying, and there was nothing I could do. I couldn't leave. The fact that there's no way to prove that I'm a son of a werewolf, because grandma managed to hide it somehow, is the only reason why I'm still alive, but - but after she died I couldn't leave this place. I remained in contact with Aunt Mione throughout the years, informing everyone of what was going on here. She told me to escape Britain, but by the time I was ready to leave, it was already too late. A new Rebellion was already building, and this _tyranny_," he spat out bitterly, "was already starting." He looked in Hadrian's eyes, and the Agent felt his heart clench at the bitterness he found in those orbs which reminded him so much of Remus Lupin.

"Creatures need to wear specially designated marks on their clothes so everyone knows who they are. The government hasn't yet started to round them all up again, but it is only a matter of time. We've started smuggling creatures out again, and this time the people _know_ who's doing what, but the control the Ministry has over the Wizarding World of Britain is too tight for us to do anything. What's worse is that everyone knows who we are so we can't go out into the open. They have this new potion which allows them to see through illusions made even by potions, so we can't disguise ourselves," Draco snorted and leaned back in his chair, arms and legs crossed. "We're doing the best we can here, but like I said - it's only a matter of time until they start killing people off again."

"If what I've seen today is any indicator, it has already started," Hadrian murmured, eyebrows rising when his friends and godson frowned at him. "The man that was killed by the captain of the Auror squad…" he stopped talking when the faces in front of him darkened.

"He was an idiot," Draco muttered and Hadrian frowned at him. "His name was Jeremy Carter. He joined our group three months ago. A muggle-born wizard whose parents are stuck in the muggle part of London. A month ago he came in here with a story that he had an idea how to get help. Spoke about a secret organization which would be able to help us since they apparently took care of a few things happening in the muggle world almost a year ago. We told them not to do that, that we'd find a way to handle this ourselves, just like we always do, but he wouldn't give up. He was supposed to meet up with them today, but he was caught."

"Well, you should be grateful to him," Hadrian said, lips tilting up even though his heart was heavy with sadness.

"How do you mean that?" Bill asked, glancing at Hermione when she gasped and covered her lips with her hands.

"Still the brightest there is," Hadrian drawled dryly and slowly stood up, his friends and godson staring at him in wonder. "I'll be right back."

"Potter…" before Draco could finish his words Hadrian disappeared with a hardly audible 'pop', and the former Slytherin sagged in his seat with a huff. "I guess, telling him that apparating out of here is impossible would be meaningless now, would it?" he muttered drawing a laugh from the others.

"Well, I do believe that we all remember that nothing is impossible to Harry Potter," Hermione spoke fondly, draping an arm around Teddy and leaning over to kiss his forehead, making the teen smile.

"Everything will be alright, Aunt Mione," he whispered comfortingly and Hermione smiled at him.

"Yes, Teddy, everything will be alright."

**cut**

Steve and Bucky startled awake when a 'pop' resonated through the living room, jumping off of their armchairs and reaching for their weapons of choice, not even fully awake yet.

When they saw Hadrian standing in front of them with his arms raised calmingly they lowered their weapons, but when Steve saw the darkened emerald eyes and the tight line of Hadrian's lips, he woke up fully, Bucky following close behind.

"I found them, and I'm afraid that the situation is much worse than we thought it was," Hadrian said, and Bucky and Steve exchanged a glance. "I've come to take you to the group of Rebels whose member was killed today. He was our contact."

"Do we need to change?" Bucky asked, glancing down at his rumpled clothes, Steve copying his action, and Hadrian's lips tilted up a bit.

"Dress up for war, boys. We have a mission to complete."

**cut**

When Hadrian, Steve and Bucky popped into the hideout of the Rebellion they found only Draco, Hermione, Bill, Teddy and Luna there, and the four looked at Hadrian as though the couldn't really believe that he was alive, let alone that he came back.

"Draco, Hermione, Bill, Teddy, Luna, I would like you to meet Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and my partners on this mission. You will explain everything to them while I go and get in contact with our Commanding Officer. There's not enough of you here to bring this to an end, but there _is_ enough of _us_ to help you."

"Harry - _Hadrian_," Hermione corrected herself quickly, shaking her head as though she was trying to chase unwanted thoughts away, "Muggles can't fight against wizards. You know that."

Hadrian exchanged a glance with Steve and Bucky, the two looking at him with almost matching smirks.

"Normal muggles can't," Steve agreed and looked at Hermione finding her frowning at him, "but muggles with high tech weapons and colleagues who are wizards and who managed to make our technology work in a magical environment _can_."

Hermione's eyes widened and she looked at Hadrian who was smirking at her darkly, reminding all of them exactly _why_ they followed him all those years ago.

"Summon everyone and prepare. Tomorrow before nightfall we'll finish this once and for all," with that said Hadrian vanished again, leaving Steve and Bucky with his friends.

"How does that saying go? Demons run when a good man goes to war or something like that?" Bill drawled dryly and the wizards and witches laughed in a way they hadn't laughed in years while Steve and Bucky exchanged a glance.

"Do you guys have a map of the city? We need to have a plan worked out before Andy comes back," Steve said and Draco nodded at him before offering his right hand.

"Draco Malfoy. It will be a pleasure to fight beside you."

"Steve Rogers. I have no doubt it will."

**cut**

_Demons run when a good man goes to war.  
>Night will fall and drown the sun,<br>When a good man goes to war._

_Friendship dies and true love lies.  
>Night will fall and the dark will rise.<br>When a good man goes to war._

_Demons run…_

_- Steven Moffat, 'Demons Run When A Good Man Goes To War'_

**cut**

Deafening silence ruled the Diagon Alley as windows were slammed and sealed shut, women pulling their children inside and casting protective wards over their doors while the men and women who decided to fight slowly trailed out of every street towards the square in front of Gringotts where a small group of people was already gathered, staring in amazement as more and more of wizards and witches joined them.

_'Tonight we end this' _was whispered over a thousand times that day in every café and dark corner, and while the Rebellion had hoped people would answer their pleading call, they hadn't thought so many would come.

None of them knew that Hadrian - that _Harry Potter_ - was back, but they all knew his friends, people who fought with him so many years ago.

They still carried his memory in their hearts, aware that their government has made a murderer out of him, repentant because they ostracized a man who fought for them and - they believed - died for them.

And they were doing this in his name.

In the name of the Boy-Who-Lived.

In the name of Harry James Potter, the Savior of the Wizarding World.

Wizards and Witches, Werewolves, Vampires, Veela - they were all there, and even though they weren't many, they were strong and determined.

Watching the growing crowd in front of Gringotts, Draco looked at Teddy, Hermione, Luna, Bill, Steve and Bucky, and all of them could see that even though there was disbelief in his eyes, there was hope as well.

"Imagine how this would look if they knew he was alive," Teddy murmured to Draco who snorted and turned around slightly, eyes narrowing at the marching Auror and Unspeakable Force with their 'high esteemed' Minister of Magic in the lead.

"We will soon find out," Steve said as he took a stand to Draco's left with Bucky right beside him.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The Minister of Magic - Gavin Thresher - thundered as the Ministry Forces stood behind him, some looking determined and others having questioning frowns on their faces, recognition shining in their eyes at the sight of the people gathered behind the Rebellion.

"We've had enough!" Draco snapped, his voice echoing through the street, wand clasped firmly in his right hand. "We have suffered your tyranny for long enough! Tonight we are taking our world back!"

Even though they were surrounded by Aurors and Unspeakables, the people standing behind the Rebellion stood tall, wands at the ready, determined to win their freedom after decades of submission and blind following.

"You would sacrifice the lives of men and women?! For what?!" The minister shouted.

"For freedom!" Someone shouted from behind the Rebellion, making them glance at the wizards and witches that joined them.

"For our rights!" Another voice sounded, and commotion appeared within the ranks of the Ministry Forces.

"For Harry James Potter!" Teddy called out, and to their surprise, a thundering cheer echoed through the street making some of the Aurors and Unspeakables falter in their places, others raising their wands, ready to attack at the slightest sign.

"Harry Potter is dead!" The Minister all but screamed, summoning his own wand from its holster hidden in the sleeve of his robes. "He was a traitor and a murderer…"

"He was a Hero!" Hermione roared, and some of the Creatures in the crowd behind them cheered in agreement.

"Harry Potter fought for Creatures, for Wizards and Witches! He fought for our freedom!" Luna followed Hermione, the Rebellion spreading out on either side of Draco in a way which encased the crowd of people behind them as the first line of defense.

"We fought beside him before!" Bill - the last of the Weasleys - shouted. "And now we fight _for_ him! For _his_ ideals! For _his_ sacrifices!"

"Wands at the ready!" The Minister screamed, eyes wide and full of madness, but before he could give an order for an attack, a black blur slammed into the ground in front of Draco, making stunned silence settle over everyone.

The Minister gaped as the newcomer raised his head, and furious emerald eyes met Thresher's wide ones. A light breeze passed over the square, ruffling raven black locks and revealing the famous, faded lightning bolt scar.

"Hello, Minister," Hadrian spoke in a calm voice, laced with a silent threat.

"Impossible," the Minister gasped out, taking a small step back. "You're - you're dead!" he screamed. "Your magic was bound and you were…"

"Saved," Hadrian finished for him, doing his best to ignore the amazed stares of the witches, wizards and creatures all around him, concentrating on the calming presence of Steve, who walked forward to stand to Hadrian's right, while Bucky - to Hadrian's concealed surprise - took his place to Hadrian's left, while the Rebellion raised their wands, the people behind them following their example.

Hadrian dared a glance over his shoulder and nodded minutely at his friends, his family, before looking back at the Minister. "Minister Gavin Thresher!" he called out in a harsh voice, "Hereby you are placed under arrest for sins against humanity! For enforcing a military regimen and enslaving people of the Wizarding World! For murder of an unknown number of people with creature blood or origin! For plotting to reveal the Wizarding World and planning to enslave the Muggle World! You will lay down your wand and come quietly or face the consequences of your actions!"

The Minister laughed at Hadrian's words, drawing a dangerous scowl to the Savior's face. "And what can you do, _Harry Potter_?!" he screamed insanely. "You have just a handful of people behind you while I have the Ministry Forces who are all loyal to _me_!"

"They are not all loyal to you!" Hadrian answered, making Thresher sneer at him and glance around.

As though prompted by something coming from their very hearts, several men and women, though not many, walked out of the Ministry ranks to join the crowd behind the Rebellion.

The corners of Hadrian's lips twitched minutely as he stared at the Minister who was fuming at him.

"You still don't have enough people to stop me," he pressed out through his teeth, the captain Steve, Hadrian and Bucky met the day before grinning at them from the Minister's side snidely.

"Oh, I will stop you," Hadrian growled.

"YOU AND WHAT ARMY!" The Minister screamed in rage, tensing up when Hadrian chuckled, raised his right hand and pressed a button on his high collar.

"_This_ army."

**cut**

_Holy water cannot help you now.  
>A thousand armies couldn't keep me out.<br>I don't want your money.  
>I don't want your crown.<br>See I have come to burn your kingdom down._

**cut**

All of a sudden the sound of engines filled the air and everyone looked up to see 6 Helicarriers hovering in the air with dozens of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents lowering themselves on roofs all around them.

Several familiar sounds had Steve looking up and his eyes widened when he saw Iron Man landing on the roof of Gringotts followed by no one else but Thor, Natasha, Clint and Sam.

An earsplitting roar had the Rebellion moving back while Hadrian, Steve and Bucky moved forward, and Hulk landed between them, leaving an indentation in the stone ground, before he straightened and roared.

Steve exchanged an almost _terrified_ glance with an equally shocked Bucky before looking down at Hadrian who was smirking at the Minister.

"What do you think, Minister?" he asked almost _slyly_. "Will _this_ be enough?"

**cut**

_And now all your lies will be exorcised.  
>And we will find your saints to be canonized.<br>And it's an even sum.  
>It's a melody.<br>It's a battle cry.  
>It's a symphony. <em>

**cut**

"Andy!" Steve snapped, but Bucky rushed to stop him by wrapping his arms around him, and both of them watched a green light rushing towards Hadrian, every single man and woman on the square holding their breaths, eyes widening when a huge shimmering shield appeared in fort of Hadrian who didn't even bother raising his arms, merely spreading them slightly by his sides, palms up, and the green light was absorbed into the shield, the creation wavering a bit before fading out.

"I've survived Voldemort's curse, Thresher," Hadrian bit out through clenched teeth, every muscle in that black clad body coiled for an attack. "Your curses can't harm me."

"THEN I'LL JUST TEAR YOUR HEART OUT!"

**cut**

_Seven devils all around me.  
>Seven devils in my house.<br>See they were there when I woke up this morning  
>and I'll be dead before the day is done.<em>

**cut**

"Remind me never to get on lover-boy's bad side," Bucky muttered to Steve, both of them staring in amazement as Hadrian fought to Minister, hardly putting any effort in the fight while the other man screamed and fired curses one after another with Hadrian either sidestepping them or practically waving them off.

The Aurors and Unspeakables, even the captain that just yesterday looked all high and mighty stepped back, staring in amazement at the more than impressive display of magic as Hadrian fought Thresher.

After a particularly nasty blood colored curse flew past Hadrian's head, the Savior sneered and raised his right arm, staring at Thresher with dark eyes.

"That will be enough."

**cut**

_Seven devils all around you.  
>Seven devils in your house.<br>See I was dead when I woke up this morning,  
>and I'll be dead before the day is done.<em>

**cut**

The heavy silence which settled over the square after the Minister fell on the ground was deafening.

"Anyone else?" Hadrian asked quietly as he slowly started to turn in his place, blazing emerald eyes glowing with a promise of death to _anyone_ foolish enough to go against him. "Does _anyone else_ wish to go against me?!"

The Aurors and Unspeakables started exchanging glances, looking to their Captains for instructions.

"Does anyone else think it would be _smart_ to go against me?!" Hadrian thundered, making both allies and enemies take a step back, "Because I am warning you, you will all meet the same damn faith as this idiot!" He approached the line of Ministry Forces, all of them taking a step back from him.

Hadrian appeared somehow bigger than life, the air around him snapping with static electricity. "The men and women you see standing on your rooftops are all armed with technology you can't even _imagine_! _One mark_ and they will shoot you down like the blind _sheep_ that you are! Their suits are enforced with magic, and nothing short of a _miracle_ will save you if you don't lower your wands _right now_ and surrender peacefully!"

**cut**

_They can keep me out,  
>'til I tear the walls,<br>'til I take your hearts,  
>'til I take your souls.<br>And what has been done  
>cannot be undone<br>in the evil's heart,  
>in the evil's soul.<em>

**cut**

Hadrian came to a stop in front of Steve and Bucky, very aware of all the amazed stares aimed at his back. His viridian orbs looked at the Ministry Forces with hellish fire burning in them, and to everyone's surprise, one after another, wands started meeting the floor.

"Incredible," Bucky breathed out, the word drowned by a loud cheer of the crowd behind the Rebellion while S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents got off of the roofs and started arresting the unresisting Wizards.

"Gotta say, Parker," Steve and Bucky turned on their heels, Hadrian following at a slower pace when Nick Fury walked over to them. They noticed the rest of the Avengers joining their side, while Draco, Hermione, Teddy, Luna and Bill ran over, staring at Hadrian with amazement written all over their faces. "I'm surprised."

"That's a rare sight to see, I'm sure," Hadrian answered and Nick snorted, good eye checking Hadrian over.

"If only all battles were this easy, right?" Nick teased and Hadrian chuckled with a shake of his head.

"Well, I wouldn't say so. It definitely wasn't _easy_ to bring in the Avengers _and_ almost all of S.H.I.E.L.D. here," he drawled dryly and Nick snorted clapping Hadrian's back.

"Just remember our deal, Parker, and I want to see your report on my table at 7:00 hours _our_ timeline," Nick stressed out making Hadrian smirk as they watched Nick walking away.

"So this is it?" Iron man landed beside Steve who raised an eyebrow at the multimillionaire. "I thought we were gonna fight!"

"Calm down, Stark," Clint drawled clapping Hadrian's back as he reached his side, Natasha and Bruce coming over, the gamma-scientist smiling shyly at Hadrian fully dressed since he went to shift back into human form when the Agents started rounding up the wizards and witches of the Ministry. "You owe me a drink, Andy."

"I know," Hadrian rolled his eyes at Clint, grinning when Sam landed beside them, his wings folding behind him. "Thank you all for coming," he said and bowed his head at Thor when the Norse God landed beside Bucky.

"There is no need to thank us, Hadrian Parker. You are a comrade of ours. I am sure that there will be many battles in the future where we will not be there only to scare a couple of Wizards and Witches away," Thor spoke dryly and Hadrian laughed.

"Harry?"

The Avengers and Bucky stepped away and Hadrian looked at Hermione when she, Draco, Teddy, Bill and Luna walked over to them.

Hadrian smiled at Hermione and enveloped her into a warm hug, trembling when she returned it weakly. He opened his eyes and looked at Teddy, raising one arm, and the teen ran to join the hug. Soon enough, Luna wrapped her arms around the three, leaning her head on Hadrian's back, and the raven haired wizard laughed when he saw Bill throw an arm around Draco's shoulders, pulling the struggling blond over to join the group hug.

Steve looked away from his lover, feeling like he was somehow intruding, only to raise his head when he felt a heavy metal arm on his shoulder, finding Bucky right there smiling at him reassuringly. Captain America looked at his own friends, at Tony, Natasha, Sam, Clint, Bruce and Bucky, and then smiled as he turned to look at Hadrian who was still enveloped from all sides in warm, loving hugs.

Hadrian thought he lost his friends forever, and yet, even though many weren't there anymore, those who were still remembered him, still loved him, still supported him. They were willing to fight beside him again, even though it could have cost them their lives.

Steve couldn't help but wonder what it was Hadrian had to promise to Nick for this _huge_ favor the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. did to him, but right then at that moment, it didn't matter. When they finally broke apart Hadrian looked at Steve, smiling at the captain blissfully, although Steve could see in those amazing viridian orbs a sort of sadness, and his heart ached for his lover, even though he didn't know what made Hadrian sad.

"What happens now?" Draco asked and Hadrian sighed.

"Now a group of Special Agents from S.H.I.E.L.D. will set up a base here in Diagon Alley, and the whole government will be reformed under their watch. From now on the Wizarding World will be watched by S.H.I.E.L.D. It doesn't promise that things like this will never happen again, but it will be more difficult for prejudice bastards to climb to power. And who knows! Maybe the Wizarding World will finally move past the dark ages!" Hadrian's words drew a laugh out of everyone.

"Does that mean that you'll be staying?" Teddy asked hopefully, and when Steve saw Hadrian's eyes fill with sadness again, he finally understood why it was there.

"No, Teddy. I'm sorry, but I don't have a life here anymore." The teen bowed his head sadly only to look up when Hadrian tugged him into a one armed hug. "But that doesn't mean that I won't pop over for lunch or dinner," he said, immediately drawing a grin on Teddy's face. "Besides, you have to get to know my better half, right?"

"Better half?" Teddy asked with wide eyes and Hadrian looked at Steve who was desperately trying to ignore the teasing grins on the faces of his own friends.

Steve cleared his throat and took a step closer to Hadrian. "Hi," he said in a slightly strained voice and waved his hand, feeling entirely too pathetic.

"Well, I'll be damned!" Bill grinned brightly, "Harry if I knew you swung that way I would have caught you ages ago!"

"Bill!" Hadrian snapped indignantly, blushing to the roots of his raven black hair.

"Although, judging by the coloring, I'd say Malfoy is more your type..."

"Bill!"

"But I gotta say, those muscles must feel _reeeeeeaaaaly _good."

"WILLIAM WEASLEY, I AM GOING TO GUT YOU!"

**cut**

Hadrian sighed as he threw a t-shirt into the washing machine, closed the door and started the program.

"Need any help?"

"FUCK!" Hadrian spun on his heel, managing to turn over a basked full of clothes and break a vase - what was a _vase_ doing in the… oh yeah, he brought it there to wash it since something _strange_ seemed to have gathered on the bottom since the flowers Steve bought him several weeks ago weren't taken out in time. Hadrian didn't really want to know what it was, but he would wash it before the _thing_ on the bottom developed a consciousness.

Bucky stood in the doorway smiling sheepishly at Hadrian who ran his fingers through his hair, took a deep breath and looked at Bucky accusingly. "Don't startle me like that," he muttered as he snapped his fingers, putting everything in its proper place.

"Sorry. Thought you'd hear me enter," Bucky offered a smile and Hadrian huffed, rubbing his hands against his thighs in a nervous gesture completely out of character for the man Bucky knew, although to Hadrian's defense, Bucky only knew him as someone very protective of Steve and extremely frightening when angered, _not_ as a man in his own home.

Hadrian nodded, accepting the apology and looked around the bathroom. "Did you need anything?" he asked and Bucky sighed, shifting his weight from one foot to another as he looked around the room.

"I - erm - I wanted to talk to you. Steve left to see Fury and I," he stopped, took a deep breath, and looked straight in Hadrian's eyes. "I just wanted to talk," he finished and Hadrian looked at him with an unreadable expression, or at least it looked so to Bucky.

"Come," the wizard said and walked past Bucky who followed after him, feeling entirely out of his depth.

They walked into the kitchen and Bucky took a seat at the table not knowing what else to do while Hadrian made his way over to the coffee maker, preparing two mugs and taking a carton of milk out of the fridge. Within minutes he prepared the coffee for them and joined Bucky at the table, looking straight at the Winter Soldier with his - while extremely expressive eyes to most - completely unreadable viridian orbs gazing right into Bucky's soul.

"What did you want to talk about?" Hadrian asked and Bucky took a deep breath.

"I heard you," he blurted out and Hadrian's eyebrows twitched up. "Before the whole Wizarding World mission. I heard you and Steve arguing."

"Oh," Hadrian muttered and frowned. Before Bucky could speak though, Hadrian sighed and straightened in the chair, holding the mug between both hands and looking into it as though he would find the words to say in the black liquid within. "Bucky, I want you to know that most of what I've told to Steve that day has nothing to do with you," Hadrian finally said and Bucky frowned at him, remembering fully what Hadrian had said. "I don't know how much Steve told you about me. Knowing him, he told you everything that was important, so I implore you to understand my standing in all of this. I know Steve loves you liked a brother. I know everything that transpired between the two of you, and I know how happy he is to have you back. I am also _trying_ to understand why he let you into his life so quickly, even though - in all honesty - I don't trust you, but that is mostly because I don't personally know you…"

"I would never hurt him," Bucky whispered forcing himself to keep looking into Hadrian's eyes, even though the way they seemed to see right through to his soul made him feel uncomfortable. He felt like an open book in front of the wizard, as though Hadrian could see everything he has ever done, every thought he has ever had, every dream and nightmare he had dreamed. "I know that words mean little compared to actions, but I - I would never hurt him. Not again," he finished weakly, only to tense up when Hadrian smiled at him kindly.

"Then the two of us will get along just fine," Hadrian said and Bucky felt as though air was kicked out of his lungs.

"Yeah," Bucky said after a few long minutes and Hadrian laughed lightly. "We will."

**cut**

"Will you ever tell me what deal you made with Fury to make him gather everyone and their uncle for the attack on Diagon Alley?"

Steve's softly murmured question drew a smile to Hadrian's lips.

The two were lying snuggled together under the comforter in their bed, naked bodies still trembling for the passion and relief of their love making.

Hadrian turned around slowly to look at Steve, finding the Captain staring at him with a pleading expression.

"He made me sign a contract which binds me to S.H.I.E.L.D. for the next 10 years," Hadrian answered quietly, using his left arm as a pillow while he traced Steve's left shoulder with the tips of his fingers.

"And?" Steve urged making Hadrian laugh.

"_And_ I had to agree that I would join the Avengers Initiative."

"What?" Steve muttered with a frown and Hadrian laughed quietly, leaning in to press a kiss to Steve's lips.

"You heard what I've said. I'm an Avenger now."

"Why would he do that?" Steve asked, raising his left hand to brush a raven strand behind Hadrian's ear.

"According to what he said, we never know what might hit the world in the future, and _apparently_, Natasha and Clint told him that my profile fits the requirements for the Avenger Initiative."

"So basically…"

"He didn't know how to _ask_ so he blackmailed me into it," Hadrian finished for Steve.

"A-ha," the blond man muttered and Hadrian laughed, sealing his lips over Steve's in a loving kiss, humming when Steve pulled him flat against his body, and Hadrian happily snuggled against him, settling comfortably with a content hum.

Feeling Steve's twitching even though the first Avenger tried - _really_ tried - to suppress it, Hadrian huffed and moved back a bit to look at Steve again, "What is it?"

Steve's lips tilted up into a sheepish smile. "I heard you talking with Bucky," he admitted and Hadrian frowned at him.

"But you weren't…"

"I forgot my wallet and came back, and I heard you, and then I left again so that you wouldn't figure it out," Steve blurted out and Hadrian sighed and rolled his eyes. He froze up when Steve leaned in and kissed him, only to moan and lean into his lover when Steve deepened the kiss. "Thank you," he murmured against Hadrian's lips. "Thank you for accepting him."

"He means a lot to you," Hadrian shrugged, tucking his head under Steve's chin in an attempt to hide the blush which covered his cheeks. "I mean - he really didn't know what he was doing. They used him. They took his life and will from him. And he's really willing to try and put it all behind because of you."

Steve kissed the top of Hadrian's head and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you," he whispered and felt Hadrian tremble against him.

"Idiot," the wizard grumbled making Steve laugh.

"But I'm _your_ idiot."

"Bloody right, you are."

**cut**

_*Ready?*_

Bucky snorted as the safety of his sniper-rifle clicked and he glanced across the warehouse from his place in the ventilation system, catching sight of Steve getting to his designated place. Even though he couldn't see it from where he was hiding, he knew Hadrian was waiting to move in after Steve and Bucky confirmed their positions.

"I'm starting to understand why you keep refusing to call Fury over for one of our movie nights," Bucky muttered into his communicator, hearing both Steve and Hadrian snort.

_*When he stops sending us to Merlin forsaken parts of the world for missions, I might - just might - consider inviting him too. Until then he can bloody roast,*_ Hadrian's grumbling voice came over the line and Bucky rolled his eyes.

"Admit it, you're just bitter because we could have been in London having a gathering with Teddy and the others and instead we're in… where are we exactly? I only know we're _somewhere_ in Cambodia."

_*You're the one to talk,*_ Hadrian pressed out through his teeth. _*Don't think I didn't notice you and Draco flirting like there was no tomorrow last time we visited.*_

_*Would both of you shut up? We have a mission to finish,*_ Steve's exasperated voice came over the line and Bucky smirked even though neither could see it.

"Draco's a good guy once you get past the arrogance, cockiness, sarcasm and irony," Bucky defended the blond Slytherin.

_*So basically, you just ignore his whole personality,*_ Hadrian drawled.

_*Guys!*_ Steve hissed and Bucky sighed, hearing Hadrian doing the same.

_*Sorry, love,*_ the wizard apologized and Bucky snickered.

"He has you _sooo_ wrapped around his pinky," he muttered laying flat in the tight vent-system and taking aim of one of the two guards standing at the entrance to the room Steve had to get in to while Hadrian took out the target.

_*He has me wrapped around something alright,*_ Hadrian drawled and Bucky had to bite his tongue to stop himself from laughing when he saw Steve stumble.

_*I don't know why I put up with the two of you,*_ Steve growled and Bucky got ready to shoot, snickering under his breath.

_"You know you love us,"_ Bucky smirked and heard Hadrian chuckle when they spoke those words at the same time.

_*On my mark,*_ Steve hissed and Bucky focused, finger on the trigger as he took a deep breath.

_*Don't miss,*_ Hadrian warned Bucky, and the Winter Soldier held his breath.

"I never miss."

_*Mark.*_

Two muffled gunshots echoed through the silence of the ventilation system and the corner of Bucky's lips tilted up when Steve passed the two now dead guards and slipped into the room.

_*I'm in,*_ Steve reported, the door closing behind him, and Bucky quickly assembled his rifle.

_*Rendezvous in 10,*_ Hadrian's voice followed.

"Confirmed," Bucky answered only to curse under his breath as he tried to turn around in the tight space without making too much noise. "Next time, Parker, _you're_ the one crawling through this."

_*Are you trying to say that I'm short?*_ the wizard hissed and Bucky winced.

"Delicate, Andy, delicate," he muttered, knowing how sensitive Hadrian was about his height since his partners were - for the lack of a better word - _huge_.

_*Nice save,*_ Hadrian drawled sarcastically. _*Go and set the explosives. Turning communication off. See you in 9.*_

Bucky breathed out a sigh of relief and continued crawling through the thin tube.

"Mental that one," he bit out, "completely mental."

_*I heard that.*_

"Fuck!" Bucky hissed as he hit his head after startling at Hadrian's biting words. Bucky heard the tell tale sign of communication going off and sighed.

"Good thing he can't put _me_ on the couch."

**cut**

Bucky spun on his heel, gun raised, only to relax and breathe out when he saw that it was Hadrian who startled him by stepping on a dry branch.

"Steve in sight?" the wizard asked as he crouched beside Bucky, keeping his eyes on the base they just raided.

"Not yet," Bucky answered, glancing at Hadrian when the wizard cursed under his breath, finding the raven haired man biting into his right thumb, eyes darting all over the base, eyebrows furrowed thoughtfully. "He'll be out in a minute."

Hadrian glanced at Bucky at the certainty in his tone and nodded, pressing a small button on his collar. "Natasha, pick up better be ready before this whole thing blows in our faces," he hissed into the communicator.

_*Ready when you are,*_ Natasha's voice came over the com-line and Hadrian let go of a breath of relief, straightening when Steve ran out of the back entrance and hurried over to them, ducking into cover with a grin aimed at Bucky and Hadrian.

"This was easy!" Steve spoke breathlessly earning a grin from Bucky and a glare from Hadrian who - instead of gracing that with an answer - checked his wristwatch.

"Fireworks start in 3 minutes. Let's move," he murmured and they jumped to their feet, running as fast as they could to where Natasha was waiting to bring them home.

"FUCK!" Bucky cursed and the three spread out when bullets started flying.

"You just _had_ to jinx it, didn't you?!" Hadrian snapped at Steve, ducking when a branch broke above him, avoiding it in time.

"Love you too, Andy!" Steve answered and Bucky laughed.

"Protego!" A shield spread out from Hadrian, covering the three. "2 minutes!" the wizard snapped.

"Was it right or left?!" Bucky called out after they passed a mark they made earlier.

"Left!"

"Right!"

Hadrian and Steve looked at one another wide-eyed before both looked at Bucky who grinned at them innocently.

_*1 minute and counting! Where are you guys?!*_ Natasha's voice came over the line.

"LEFT!" The three shouted at the same time, counting seconds in their minds.

They would have sagged to the ground in joy when they ran onto a clearing and saw Natasha jumping into a helicopter waiting for them.

12

11

10

"Was fucking time!" Natasha snapped at them as they jumped into the helicopter one by one, immediately rushing to their seats and buckling the seatbelts.

7

6

"Just fly!" Hadrian snapped as he stared out the hatch at the bad guys running towards them, shooting at the helicopter.

"On it!" Natasha answered and the helicopter slowly started to rise. "Hold on boys, it's gonna be a bumpy ride!"

2

1

The explosion flattened the forest with the ground, and only years of experience Natasha had brought them safely above the shockwave which rushed through the forest.

Minutes later all four of them started breathing again, sagging in their seats and Steve grinned brightly. "Well! That was…"

"Say fun and I'm going to castrate you," Hadrian bit out only to ad, "_permanently._"

Bucky paled glancing at Steve who just shook his head, telling Bucky to just be quiet.

"How can castration _not_ be permanent?" Natasha wondered aloud, voicing Bucky's thoughts, and Hadrian just groaned and hit his head back against the metal wall of the helicopter.

"Can you just take us home? I need a shower," the wizard moaned.

"I'm taking you to headquarters first. Nick wants your reports immediately," Natasha answered in an apologizing, sympathetic tone, wincing when she heard Hadrian hitting his head again.

"He _so_ owes me," Hadrian grumbled while Steve and Bucky snickered.

"Come on, Andy. We get this done, Tash drops me off at Draco's, and you and Steve can have the apartment _aaaall_ for yourselves for a few days," Bucky drawled teasingly.

"Are you forgetting that you're still under parole and Steve's your _legal guardian_?" Hadrian glared at Bucky who grinned at him innocently.

"What could I _ever_ do while in the company of the Minister of Magic?" The Winter Soldier asked and Hadrian snorted.

"With Draco? I don't know, set the world on fire?"

"Since neither one of them even _knows_ how to work a stove, I don't believe we have to worry about that," Steve muttered dryly.

"True," Hadrian agreed with a shrug, "and a weekend alone _does_ sound good," he added with a leering grin aimed at Steve who returned it equally, both of them ignoring Bucky making gagging motions and Natasha smirking at them through the reflection in the rearview mirror. "As a matter of fact, why don't we start right away," as he was finishing that sentence Hadrian already unbuckled his seatbelt.

"Hadrian, what are you…"

"Good luck handing in that report, Bucky!" Hadrian grinned, unbuckling Steve's seatbelt with a snap of his fingers. "Buh-bye!" He wiggled his fingers at Bucky who was gaping at him and Steve who merely shrugged apologetically before both he and Hadrian disappeared with a pop.

Bucky took a deep breath and sagged in his seat.

"So!"

"No," Natasha cut him off sharply, even though the corners of her lips were tilting up.

"Not even a _liiiitle_ detour?" Bucky was _not_ below begging.

"No."

But he was below whining. "_Pleeeeaaase?_" Or not.

"No."

The Winter Soldier huffed and crossed his arms over his chest.

A moment later a devious smirk tilted his lips.

"I'll buy you a whole bottle of Firewhiskey," he drawled looking over his shoulder at the rearview mirror meeting Natasha's eyes for a mere second before she looked away.

"No."

"Two bottles?"

"No."

"Four?"

"No."

"A carton?"

Bucky knew he was swaying Natasha's resolve when he was answered with silence. He grinned at her when she glanced at him, knowing he won.

"Two cartons and you're taking Clint's mission next week," Natasha bargained and Bucky's grin grew.

"Deal!" He relaxed in his seat, inwardly cheering.

"You _do_ realize that Hadrian and Steve just might kill you."

"Oh _fuck_."

**cut**

(1) _Satellite,_ sung by Rise Against, written by Z. Blaire, J. Principe, T. McIlrath and B. Brandon, published by LYRICS © SONY/ATV MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC

(2) _Seven Devils,_ sung by Florence and the Machine, written by F. M. L. Welch and P. Epworth, published by LYRICS © UNIVERSAL MUSIC PUBLISHING GROUP, EMI MUSIC PUBLISHING

**cut**

**That's it folks! I really do hope you liked it!**

**Please, leave a review! You are all the best readers a writer can ask for! Thank you for all your encouraging reviews and support. You make my life a little easier to bear.**

**All my love,  
>Ms. Yuki<strong>


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